


Illusions

by xtremeroswellian



Series: Who I Am, What I'll Become [1]
Category: Angel: the Series, Roswell (TV 1999)
Genre: Attempted Murder, BAMF Cordelia Chase, BAMF Liz Parker, Bombs, Cordelia Chase is smarter than she's given credit for, Cordelia Chase takes crap from no one, F/M, Fang Gang to the rescue, Friendship, Gen, Hurt Cordelia, Isabel uses shiny alien powers to distract Alex, Kidnapping, Maria DeLuca is tired of the alien bullshit, Near Death Experiences, Nightmares, Protective Angel, Roadtrip, Seriously why are none of the Roswell parents useful, Shapeshifting, Threats of torture, Visions, Wolfram and Hart, absentee parenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:20:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 37,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23824459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xtremeroswellian/pseuds/xtremeroswellian
Summary: Fleeing Roswell's painful memories, Liz takes off to L.A. and finds trouble, leaving Angel, Cordelia and Wesley to save her; little do they know they're in just as much trouble as she is.
Relationships: Alex Whitman & Isabel Evans, Angel & Cordelia Chase & Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, Cordelia Chase & Liz Parker, Liz Parker & Angel, Liz Parker & Maria Deluca & Alex Whitman, Liz Parker/Max Evans, Max Evans & Isabel Evans & Michael Guerin, Max Evans & Maria DeLuca, Michael Guerin & Maria DeLuca
Series: Who I Am, What I'll Become [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1716577
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers: For Angel, everything up through and including Shanshu in L.A. (1st season's finale), and for Roswell, everything up through and including Destiny (1st season's finale)...

"You don't understand. He's not even speaking to me!"

Nasedo listened patiently as the girl on the other end of the line vented her frustrations.

"It's been two weeks! Two weeks since he found out that we were destined to be together and all he's done is go to the Crashdown and stare at Liz Parker!"

Nasedo's eyes darkened at the name. Damn girl. She had been the reason the FBI had caught Max in the first place. Because of her, Max had risked everything, time and time again.

And now, because of her, Max was in full denial of his destiny, of their people's destiny. Because of some human. As he listened to his surrogate daughter become more and more upset, Nasedo himself became aware of his own rising anger.

"Nasedo, we have to do something! I need your help!"

"Don't worry, Tessie. Daddy will take care of everything," he promised.

And Nasedo never broke a promise to his little girl.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maria DeLuca hugged her best friend, Liz Parker again, fighting to hold back tears. "I can't believe you're leaving."

"It won't be forever, Maria," Liz reassured her friend again, glancing at Alex helplessly.

Alex took the hint and stepped forward, putting a hand on Maria's shoulder. "Your train's boarding," he told Liz quietly.

She nodded and pulled away from Maria. She stooped down and picked up her two duffle bags.

"Call us when you get to the hotel," Alex said, avoiding her eyes.

Liz felt a twinge of guilt, and she stared at him for a moment. "This is something that I have to do," she said softly. "I can't be here now, Alex."

Alex finally met her eyes, his own eyes sad, but understanding. "I know," he said simply. He kissed her forehead. "Take care."

"I will." She offered them a brief, nervous smile. "Well, I'm off." She turned and climbed aboard the train, pausing on the steps to turn and see her two best friends in the world watching her. Then she turned away.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nasedo smiled as he took a seat on the train. He couldn't kill her now, for obvious reasons. But by the train stopped in L.A., it would be well after nightfall. And no one would notice if one teenage girl didn't make it to her hotel room.


	2. Chapter 2

Angel surveyed the new office carefully. It was bigger than their old one, though it was still mainly an interior office, thus allowing little chance of sunlight to burn him alive.

"Do you like it?" David Nabitt asked him anxiously, looking hopefully.

Angel nodded, giving the man a half-smile. "It's great, Mr. Nabitt."

"We appreciate your financial assistance," Wesley told him as he sat down on one of the desks that Mr. Nabitt had had delivered that afternoon.

"Well, anything to help. After all, you guys saved my life, and it's not like money's a big issue for me."

Angel glanced over at Cordelia Chase, who was staring blankly at the coffee maker. She was wearing a yellow blouse and an ankle length black skirt, a tame outfit for her. Her long dark hair was swept up in one of those hair clips and fastened neatly on her head.

She was still pale, but other than that, she seemed to have recovered from Vocah's mind attack okay. Wesley, too, was mostly healed.

He and Wesley had stayed at Cordelia's apartment for a week after she'd been released from the hospital. Wesley, of course, had his own place, but after everything that had happened, the three of them weren't anxious to be apart again. They were, as Cordelia had pointed out, family.

One week for everyone to recover and then they had started the search for a new office. They hadn't searched long before David Nabitt had shown up on Cordy's doorstep, holding the deed to a building he'd bought--and given to them--free of charge.

Angel had been reluctant to accept the gift, but Cordelia had pointed out that unless they found a new building soon, they weren't going to be able to help a whole lot of people. Wesley had agreed, and Angel had given in and accepted the generous present.

"I'll get your sign up by tomorrow. The one outside the building and the one for your office door."

"Thank you, Mr. Nabitt, but really, we can take care of--"

"Oh, nonsense. The faster all the advertising hits the papers and the details are taken care of, the faster you guys can get back to the business of saving lives and fighting demons," David said cheerfully. "Besides, I like spending money on other people," he added, looking over at Cordelia hopefully.

But if she heard the comment, she didn't acknowledge it. Angel honestly didn't think she'd even heard it at all. He glanced over at Wesley, who had a concerned expression on his face, and the two of them exchanged a look.

The phone ring and Wesley quickly grabbed it. "Angel Investigations. We help the hopeless." He paused, and listened. "Uh, yes, hold on." He covered the receiver with his hand. "Mr. Nabitt, it's for you."

"Oh." David took the phone from him.

Angel took the opportunity to walk over to Cordelia. "Hey." When she didn't respond, he frowned and put a hand on her shoulder. "Cordelia? You okay?"

She blinked a couple of times and her eyes focused on his face. "What?"

"You were a million miles away. Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry," she answered vaguely.

"That was my office. They need my help, so I have to go. I'll come back tomorrow and make sure the signs are done and everything." He headed for the door. "Hang with you guys later."

Angel shook his head as David left the office. "So, what do you guys think?"

Wesley leaned back in the chair. "Well, it's nice. Close to Cordelia's apartment, and the carpet's clean."

"And not too much sunlight," he added. "Cordy?"

"It's great," she said with forced cheerfulness.

Angel and Wesley exchanged another look. "You know, Cordelia--" Wesley began.

Cordelia suddenly grasped onto the side of the table she was leaning against, closing her eyes tightly and grimacing.

"Vision," Angel said grimly, as he quickly guided her into a chair, knelt down in front of her and kept his hands on her shoulders, as though he could somehow pull her out of her own mind if need be.

She leaned forward, pressing her hands to her forehead as all the color drained from her face. Wesley moved to Angel's side, holding a glass of water and two pain killers in his hand. After a few seconds, Wesley shifted nervously. "Angel, is she all right?"

Angel's jaw tightened as he stared at his friend, willing her to come out of the vision. He moved one hand to her wrist, feeling for her pulse, which was much more rapid than normal. Come on, open your eyes, he thought.

"Angel?" Wesley repeated, fear creeping into his voice.

"Come on, Cordy," he whispered.

"Should I call 911?"

At that moment, her eyes opened, and she clutched Angel's arm for support. "Are you all right?" he asked immediately.

Cordelia swallowed hard and nodded. "There's a girl at the train station. Dark hair...she's in trouble. A man is after her."

Angel stared at her intently. "You're sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, go on. I'm fine." She accepted the pain killers Wesley held out to her as Angel stood up. Just as he reached the door, she called, "Angel! Be careful. I have a bad feeling about this."

He nodded. "I'll be back," he promised. Angel met her eyes for a moment, and then turned and hurried off into the night.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liz stepped off the train and onto the subway platform. Only a few other passengers got off at this stop in L.A. She glanced around, her stomach twinging with nervous anxiety.

Well, you're not in Roswell anymore, Dorothy, she thought wryly. Time to find a payphone and call a cab.

Liz veered to the left, where a row of payphones lined the wall. She dug some change out of her pocket and flipped through one of the chained down phone books. After she'd ordered a cab, she glanced around the darkened station.

She didn't see anyone around, but the hairs were standing up on the back of her neck. Every instinct she had was telling her she was in danger. She reached into her pocket again and pulled out her keys, prepared to use them as a weapon if she had to.

"Excuse me, Miss. Do you have any spare change?"

Liz whirled around to face the man who had spoken. He was an older man--probably in his late 40s or 50s, and was wearing raggedy, torn clothing and a pair of ratty tennis shoes. His face was almost completely covered by a wool scarf.

"Um, no, sorry," she answered, and moved away from him.

"You know, the problem with your generation is you're a bunch selfish, spoiled brats! Somebody oughtta teach you a lesson!"

Liz shuddered and backed away involuntarily, clutching her keys so tightly her knuckles turned white.

The man gave a low chuckle and pulled a sharp knife out of his coat and held it up for her to see. "You're very pretty," he told her as he moved closer.

Liz dropped her duffel bag and ran in the opposite direction as fast as she could. She could hear his footsteps behind her, coming closer...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel glanced around the nearly-abandoned station. He heard footsteps--two sets--approaching and then a frightened scream.

He emerged from the shadows and stepped between the girl and the man chasing her with a knife, positioning himself so he was facing the man. Upon seeing Angel, the man stopped his chase abruptly and stared at him.

"Don't you know it's not safe to run with knives?" Angel asked, narrowing his eyes and glaring at the man.

The man stared back, but only for another moment. Then he dropped the knife to the ground with a clatter and turned around and ran in the opposite direction.

Angel frowned, stooped down, picked up the knife, and tossed it into the nearest trash can. The girl was staring at him in surprise. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, thank you."

He nodded. "You shouldn't be out walking alone at night in this city. It's not safe."

"I know. I'm waiting. For a taxi."

"I'll wait with you."

He watched her brown eyes widen slightly and she brushed a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. He couldn't help but think the girl looked a little like Cordelia. "Okay. I...dropped my bag," she told him as she moved by him cautiously.

Angel paused, puzzled by the emotions he sensed from her. Not fear or even anxiety, but a wariness towards him. A wariness that was very uncommon from a girl her age. She couldn't be more than 17.

He watched as she picked up her bag and glanced at him. "Are you...a cop?" she asked hesitantly.

He shook his head and wondered if she was a runaway. Then he realized her wariness hadn't subsided or grown by his admission. "No, actually, I was just out for a walk."

"It's not safe to walk alone after dark in this city," she told him, and he couldn't stifle the urge to smile a bit.

"No, it's not. But I'm not a target."

The girl raised an eyebrow. "Women aren't the only ones who can get mugged, you know."

Angel agreed. "However, there are circumstances that supercede my situation."

"So if you're not a cop, then--?" Her voice held a slight touch of suspicion.

It was Angel's turn to hesitate. He wasn't very good at making conversation or telling people about his work. He remembered his vow to Cordelia a few weeks ago. 'I'll try harder,' he'd said.

"I help people that are in trouble," he told her.

She frowned. "But you're not a cop."

"No." He fumbled for the words. "I'm sort of--an investigator." He pulled out one of the business cards from his pocket and handed it to her.

She looked down at it and then back up at him, an unreadable expression on her face.

"People come to us for help when they don't feel like they can go to the police." She nodded and started to hand the card back, but he shook his head. "Why don't you keep it?" he said quietly as his eyes met hers.

She held his gaze for a moment and then slipped the card into her jean's pocket. "Who are you?" she asked as the taxi pulled up.

"Angel."

"Hey, Miss, you order a cab?" the driver asked, leaning over and peering out the open window.

She blinked. "Yeah." She opened the door, tossed her bag inside and looked at Angel. "Thank you for your help."

Angel nodded and watched as she slipped inside the cab and was driven away. "Who are *you*?" he wondered aloud, staring at the tail lights as they disappeared around the corner.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nasedo watched him from across the street, his eyes flashing from the intensity of his glare. Liz Parker should have been eliminated by now, but because of him she wasn't.

Yet.

Nasedo wasn't sure who the man was exactly, but he knew he wasn't human. He wasn't an alien, either.

It didn't really matter. If he had to, he'd kill him along with the Parker girl. He just had to make the deaths look like random acts of violence. No sense in alerting other aliens--especially Max Evans--by using his powers to kill them. He didn't want anyone to suspect him when he was supposed to assist in the upcoming battles.

But with the Parker girl out of the way, Max would have no reason not to accept his destiny and lead the revolution.

And then Nasedo could finally return home.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You were *what*?"

Liz winced and held the phone away from her ear for a second before returning it. "I'm okay, Maria. Really. I promise."

"God, Liz. Did you go to the police?" Alex asked in concern.

She shifted so her legs were propped up beside her on the hotel room bed. "No. I sort of didn't have to."

"But I thought you said you got mugged," Maria protested.

"I said almost mugged."

"Liz, how did you get away?" Alex questioned.

She pulled the business card out of her pocket and looked at it. "There was a guy there. He...saved me."

"What guy?" Maria asked immediately.

"I don't know exactly." She hesitated. No need in making everyone paranoid about a P.I. saving her. Besides, in the past year she'd developed this odd ability to sense danger, and while the guy hadn't seemed normal exactly, he didn't seem dangerous, either. At least, not dangerous to her. "He just said he was out walking."

"A likely story," Maria snorted.

Liz could imagine her sitting lotus-style on Alex's bed, brows furrowed in worry, probably convinced that the man was an alien hunter of some sort. "He was okay, Maria."

"How did he save you?" Alex asked.

"He stepped in between me and the mugger. And when the mugger saw him, he dropped the knife and took off."

"Knife? There was a knife?" Maria shrieked.

"Oh, my God, Liz," Alex muttered.

Liz cringed. She hadn't meant to tell them that part.

"Where's my cedar oil?" Maria demanded and Liz could hear her dumping out the contents of her purse.

"Guys, it's okay. I'm fine."

"Liz, you should come home," Maria argued.

"I can't," Liz said softly, an image of Max kissing Tess flashing into her mind, and bringing involuntary tears to her eyes. Get over it, they were destined to be together, she told herself.

"But it's so much safter here, Lizzie. I mean, people don't run around town chasing other people with knives!"

"No, they just shoot innocent bystanders in crowded cafes when they argue," Liz replied wryly, remembering the day that she had been shot, the day that had changed everything...

There was a moment of silence.

"So this guy who saved you. Did he have a name?"

"Angel," she answered, glancing down at the card in her hand and staring at the angel design on it.

"That was his name? Or do you mean, like, guardian?" Maria asked.

Liz blinked, considered it, then answered softly, "You know, I'm really not sure."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wesley handed Cordelia a cup of coffee.

"Thanks," she mumbled. She was lying on the 2-seat sofa in the new Angel Investigations office, and staring at the clock, which now read 11:21.

Wesley was pretty sure she hadn't blinked in a half hour.

"He'll be okay, Cordelia," he told her quietly as he sat down on the edge of his desk.

She shifted her gaze to his face. "Of course he will be. He's Angel," she said, her words harsher than the expression in her eyes.

Wesley took no offense by her tone. Angel had been gone for nearly three hours, and he was getting a bit worried, too. He sipped his own coffee and studied her from the corner of his eye. The color had returned to her face and she was no longer holding her head. Apparently the pain killers had finally kicked in and helped lessen her headache from the vision.

He and Angel had discussed the possible repercussions of Vocah's mental attack on Cordelia. The demon, in an attempt to cut off Angel's connections to the Powers That Be, had left a mark on her than forced her mind open to receive visions of all the people who were hurt or in trouble in the world. She had collapsed, screaming from the pain of the endless visions, and had been sent to the neuro-psych ward of the local hospital. The only way the visions could be stopped was to read the words of Anatole from the Sacred Scroll. Unfortunately, after marking Cordelia, Vocah had stolen the scroll from Angel and blown up the original Angel Investigations office--with Wesley in it.

Angel, of course, had saved him from a fiery death, and had battled Vocah for the scroll. In the process, it had been grabbed by Lindsey McDonald, a lawyer who worked for Wolfram and Hart, a demon defending agency that they'd had several encounters with. After killing Vocah, Angel had tried to convince Lindsey to give him the scroll, but the man had held it over an open flame instead, forcing Angel to cut off Lindsey's hand to keep him from burning the the only thing that could save Cordelia's life.

He and Angel had worried about what possible lingering effects the demon's mind attack could have on her. They weren't even sure if she would continue to get the visions, or if she did, if they would be harsher than they previously had been.

Wesley knew that when the vision had come to Cordelia tonight, the first one she'd had since the attack, he and Angel had both been frightened. Especially since there wasn't really anything they could do had something gone wrong.

At that moment, the door opened and Angel walked inside, covered in dirt, dust and blood. He and Cordelia both jumped to their feet.

Angel shook his head quickly. "It's not my blood," he told them.

"I know that," Cordelia said, rolling her eyes. Wesley noticed that her stance relaxed slightly and most of the worry left her face. "What *did* happen?"

"Pack of vampires. Not happy ones."

"Don't know many that are," she muttered.

"How many's a pack?" Wesley asked.

"Eight."

He frowned. "All traveling together?"

"Apparently."

Cordelia sighed. "Which means--?"

Angel looked at her. "That they're up to no good."

"Well, at least we're back in business," she said, trying to sound cheerful.

"What about the girl at the train station?" Wesley asked.

"Safe. Although..."

"What?"

"Something was off about the whole situation."

"Off how, exactly?" Wesley grabbed a pen and notepad, ready to take notes.

"The guy that was chasing her, for one."

"Vampire?"

"No."

"Demon?" Cordelia suggested.

"I don't know. Maybe. But he definitely wasn't human."

"Why is that strange? Most of the people in this city *aren't* human," she pointed out.

"Yeah, but this was different. He was chasing her with a knife. Demons and vampires don't tend to use weapons to kill their victims."

"What do you think we're dealing with?" Wesley asked him, frowning.

"I don't know," Angel admitted. "But I'm pretty sure this is something different. Something none of us has ever dealt with before."

Cordelia edged away from the door a bit. "And whatever it is, it's still out there somewhere."

Wesley recognized a touch of fear in her voice. Not a lot, and not noticeable to anyone who didn't really know her, but it was there all the same, no matter how minute it was.

Angel noticed it, too. "Research at Cordy's apartment?" he suggested nonchalantly.

Wesley nodded in agreement and noticed that she seemed relieved to have company.

"I'll drive," Angel volunteered.


	3. Chapter 3

Maria DeLuca had just finished clearing off one of the tables at Liz's parents' restaurant, The Crashdown Cafe, when she heard the bells jingle on the door. She looked up as Max Evans, his sister Isabel, and their friend, her ex-boyfriend, Michael Guerin walked in.

"Great," she muttered, looking away quickly. "Agnes!"

The older waitress gave her a withering glance. "What?"

"Would you mind getting their orders?" Maria asked sweetly. She didn't like the older woman. She was lazy, and sarcastic, and...well, bitchy. But right now she didn't care about any of those things. Agnes was the only other waitress working the Tuesday morning shift.

"I'm on break," Agnes told her flatly, taking a long drag off her cigarette and puffing it out in rings of smoke.

Maria made a face and turned away in disgust. Wonderful.

And to top it off, she couldn't even call Liz and compare stories on why men were jerks. Well, not all men. Alex Whitman was one of her best friends and he wasn't a jerk. He must have gotten a recessive jerk gene.

It was just all the other men on the planet, and on all planets if Michael was any indication.

"Suck it up, DeLuca," she muttered to herself. She took a deep breath, drew back her shoulders, stood up straight and marched over to the booth they were sitting at. "Hi, Isabel," she said, smiling at her and deliberately ignoring the two guys.

"Hey," Isabel said back, shifting uncomfortably.

"What can I get for you?"

"Just a cherry coke."

Maria wrote it down and waited, her eyes never leaving her order book.

"I'll have an alien omelette," Michael said quietly.

She wrote that down, too, but didn't look at him.

"I need to see Liz," Max blurted out.

"What do you want to eat?"

"Maria, it's important. I need to talk to her, to tell her--"

"She's not here. What do you want to eat?"

"Where is she? I really need to see her."

Maria lowered the tablet from her face, slamming it down on the table with a thud and causing all three aliens to jump. Her eyes narrowed as she glared coldly at Max. "She's not here. She's not in Roswell. And in fact, she's not even in the state of New Mexico. Do you want to know why, Max? Because of Tess, and you and your *destiny.* Liz needed to put some space between the two of you and her, and if I could have afforded it, I would have gone with her, because God knows this is the last place *I* want to be right now."

She took a deep breath and straightened up. "Now, if you're not here to eat, then you're wasting my time. I have work to do."

And without another word, she grabbed her order book and stormed away from the table.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Max, Michael and Isabel stared after the retreating waitress for a stunned moment. "Well, that went well," Michael said sarcastically.

Isabel rolled her eyes. "What did you expect? That she'd be thrilled to see us?"

"She didn't seem to mind you," he grumbled.

"No, she didn't," Max agreed slowly.

"That's because Alex and I are still on speaking terms," she replied matter of factly. "And, Michael, need I remind you that *you* walked out on her?"

Before Michael had a chance to respond, Max cut in. "Talk to him for me," he said, focusing his eyes on his sister.

She frowned, then realized what he meant. "No way, Max." She shook her head vehemently.

Michael looked back and forth between them. "Hello? Am I the only one here who thinks we need to focus on saving our people?"

"Michael, what exactly are we supposed to do?" she demanded.

"Contact Nasedo, for starters. Try and find out more about who we are. Get Tess and him to teach us how to use our powers."

"Michael, I really think after everything's that happened, we need to lay low for awhile," Max said quietly.

"And you moping over Liz isn't the kind of laying low I want to do," he said harshly, glancing over to where Maria was standing. "It's been two weeks, Max. We need to take some action."

"Just because you walked out on Maria--"

"Hey, I did what was best for her. For both of us. At least now she's not in danger because of me!"

"No, she's just heartbroken," Max replied bitterly.

"Guys, knock it off! Both of you. This is not the time nor the place to be having this particular discussion," Isabel snapped, looking around the cafe nervously.

Michael stood up abruptly. "I'm going home." He left without another word.

For a long moment, Isabel and Max remained silent.

"I have to talk to Liz, Isabel," he finally said. "Please talk to Alex for me and try to find out where she is." Isabel started to protest until Max looked up and she saw the tears shining in his eyes. "Please Isabel."

She sighed. "Okay, I'll try. But Max..."

"Yeah?"

"Michael's right. We are eventually going to have to figure out what to do about who we are. We can't pretend forever."

"I know," he said quietly.

"Do you, Max? Because I don't think any of us are prepared to deal with what we're going to have to deal with. Not by a long shot."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel leaned against the kitchen sink in Cordelia's apartment and stared out the window. It was 8:15 in the morning and had been pouring down rain since at least 6, and it still didn't show any signs of stopping.

He wondered about the girl he'd rescued last night. He wasn't sure what it was about her exactly, but she was different somehow. She was undoubtedly human, but there was something about her he couldn't quite place...

And for the guy-or the thing-that had been chasing her...it just didn't make any sense to him.

Angel didn't get very far in his thoughts because he heard someone behind him. "Morning, Cordelia. Coffee?" he offered without turning around.

"Sounds good."

He poured her a cup and handed it to her. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah." She smiled. "Thanks."

Angel nodded, smiling back at her. He knew what she meant. They had stayed up researching until nearly 2 this morning, sprawled around her living room. Since they hadn't really had much to go on, they didn't really get very far with the research. Angel had glanced over at the couch where Cordelia had been sitting and realized she had fallen asleep. He'd put a finger to his lips to signal Wesley to be quiet, and had carried her to her bedroom and tucked her into her bed.

Wesley had retired to her guest room shortly after, leaving Angel with the couch. But since he hadn't been tired, he had watched some t.v. with Cordy's ghostly roommate Dennis.

"It's really coming down out there," Cordelia commented, moving to stand next to him at the sink and staring out at the rain.

"Yeah, since early."

She moved away and went to the door, where she retrieved the newspaper as Angel continued to look outside.

His thoughts wandered back to the girl. He wondered where she was from, why she had seemed so...wary. Why her eyes had reflected a wisdom and a sadness most didn't acquire until they were much older.

This time his thoughts were interrupted by the shattering of glass.

Angel whirled around to see Cordelia's knees buckle as she cried out and clutched her head in both hands. He was at her side before he realized he had moved, and he caught her before she hit the ground.

He picked her up effortlessly and put her down on the kitchen table, steadying her with hands on her shoulders. "Cordy?"

She was near tears when the vision ended. "Oh, my God, Angel."

The tone of her voice and the fear in her eyes sent a chill down his spine.

"There's a bomb."


	4. Chapter 4

"What the hell is going on here?" Detective Kate Lockley demanded as she pushed through a crowd in front of the Holiday Inn.

Another officer looked over at her. "Bomb squad's inside. Three people claiming to be FBI commanded the hotel manager to evacuate the building."

"Claiming?" she repeated, brushing a strand of blond hair out of her eyes.

"Two men, one woman. Said there was a bomb. Manager wasn't taking chances so he did as told."

She frowned. "Have they found anything?"

"No, nothing."

Kate scanned the crowd and caught sight of someone she knew. Her eyes narrowed and darkened. "I should have known."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel glanced back at the Holiday Inn as the bomb squad re-emerged. He blinked rapidly against the rain as it pounded down on him.

"Did they find anything?" Cordelia asked worriedly as she rocked back and forth on her heels and tried in vain to tilt the umbrella at an angle so she didn't get wet.

"I don't know," Wesley replied, frowning.

Angel looked over the crowd and squinted as a girl with long dark hair hurried by. He stared for a moment, and started to follow when Kate Lockley stepped in front of him, her eyes flashing. "I should have known you people were behind this!" she accused, glaring at him. "None of you are FBI, which means you've committed an act of fraud and are subject to arrest."

"Hey, we're trying to save lives here," Cordelia protested.

"From what? Sleeping in on a week day? The bomb squad combed that hotel and found nothing!"

"Then have them do it again," Angel said quietly.

"For what purpose? There is no bomb. And furthermore, you leave me no choice but to place the three of you under arrest for fraud and public endangerment!"

No sooner had the words left her mouth than a huge explosion rocked the ground.

Angel tackled Cordelia, shielding her from the flying glass and debris with his own body. When the immediate danger ceased, he pulled away and looked down at her. "You okay?"

She nodded quickly, then glared at a stunned Kate. "You were saying?"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Isabel waited nervously on Alex Whitman's doorstep. It was early--at least too early for a non-school day. But after seeing Max mope around all night the evening before and hearing him blast the Counting Crows at 6 this morning, Isabel decided she'd better talk to Alex and find out where Liz was before she wound up strangling her brother.

She chewed on her lower lip anxiously. While she and Alex were still speaking, things were akward between them. Ever since she had learned her "destiny" was with Michael, things between them had been strained.

Isabel sighed and pushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. She didn't want to be with Michael. Yes, she loved him, but it was the way a sister would love her brother. Not a husband.

It was unfair, really. She was 17 years old and she was supposed to be worrying about things like prom, school, and getting accepted into a good college--not saving a race of people.

Just as she was about to give up and leave, the door opened. Alex peered out at her, squinting, and rubbing sleep out of his eyes. "Isabel?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you," she said softly, feeling uncharacteristically shy.

"It's okay," he said quickly. "Are you?"

Isabel looked up and met his concerned gaze. For a moment she lost herself in his blue eyes. Then he opened the door the rest of the way and stepped out onto the porch. He reached for her and she fell into his embrace.

She didn't even realize she was crying until she heard Alex whispering that everything would be okay.

"But what if it's not?"

Was that really her voice? It sounded so broken, so...defeated.

"Come inside," he urged.

The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the Whitman's living room sofa, her face pressed into Alex's shoulder as he held her tightly.

"God, this is so pathetic," she muttered when she finally managed to pull away.

"What is?" Alex asked gently.

"Me. Look at me. I'm falling apart." Isabel swiped away her tears angrily.

He touched her shoulder gently. "Hey, you have a right to. After everything that's happened..." his voice trailed off.

She met his eyes. "Alex, I just want you to know how much I appreciate your support through all this. I mean, I was afraid you'd stop talking to me like Maria and Liz did with Michael and Max."

He sighed and looked away. "They're hurting right now. Maria's angry at the world because Michael pushed her away. And Liz...she's just doing what she thinks is right."

"But it's *not* right," Isabel said in frustration. "Max hasn't done anything but mope since Liz broke up with him. And Michael's just as angry as Maria. He snaps at everyone and he has this...this perpetual glare on his face."

"Have you tried talking to them?"

"I've tried everything, Alex. Max quits listening to anything that has to do with us or our "destinies" or anything that's not about Liz. And Michael. He's just the opposite. He's mad at Max because of how Max has been acting, when really he feels the same way Max does." She stood up and started pacing.

"What about Tess?" Alex asked quietly.

Isabel sighed. "She's one of us. In a past life, she was Max's wife."

"And you were betroved to Michael."

"Yes, but that was then. I don't even remember that life. This is my life--here in Roswell. And I don't feel that way about Michael. I don't want to be with him anymore than he wants to be with me or Max wants to be with Tess."

"What do you want?"

"Michael wants to contact Nasedo and have him teach us more about what powers we have. And Max wants to be with Liz. And they're always putting me in the middle of their arguments."

"Isabel," Alex cut in gently. "Forget what Max and Michael want for a minute. What are *you* feeling? What do you want?"

She stared at him for a moment. "You know, I think you're the only person who's asked me that." Isabel moved back to the couch, sat down, and stared at her hands. "I want things to go back to the way they were before. This is just...too much. I don't want the responsibility of fighting a race of people to save another, but at the same time..."

"At the same time, you *do* feel responsible," he finished quietly.

Isabel nodded miserably. "That's why we're here. We were sent here to save our people. That's why we were created," she said bitterly. "Not to fall in love or get a college education or get a job or any reason normal people are here."

"That may be true, but it doesn't mean you can't do those things, Isabel," Alex reminded her quietly. He reached over and took her hand. "You have to do what you feel is right, the same as everyone else. You breathe, you eat, you sleep, you have emotions and you feel pain, just like any of us so-called 'normal people.' And whatever you decide is right for you...or not right for you...you're not alone. I'll always be here for you, Isabel. No matter what."

Tears sprung to her eyes. "Thank you for saying that. It's just...no matter what I do, I'll be letting down someone I love. If I decide I have to pursue this destiny--I'll be hurting you and my parents, and Liz and Maria, and even Max. If I don't, I'll be hurting Michael and Tess and all the people I'm supposed to help save. How can I do that, Alex? How can I possibly choose?"

He leaned his forehead against hers and pressed her hand to his heart. "You follow this," he whispered.

"What if I don't know what it's telling me?"

Alex smiled a bit. "Then you give it some time and learn to listen to it. And things will turn out how they're supposed to. You just have to have faith."

"What about Max and Michael?"

"They'll find their own way in their own time."

"I can't stand to see them like this anymore. They're driving me crazy!"

"So take some time away from them for a few days."

"And do what?"

"I don't know. Whatever you do to excape your mind when you get too stressed to think."

Isabel sighed. "I can't just abandon Max and Michael. Max is so miserable withou Liz. I've never seen him like this before. I think if he could just talk to her, he'd be okay." She hesitated. "Alex--"

Alex shook his head. "Isabel, please don't ask me what I think you're about to."

"I wouldn't under normal circumstances. I'm just so worried about him."

"I want to help. You know I do. And if it was anything else you were asking, I'd do it, but..."

"I know," she said, sighing again. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to make you choose between me and your friendship with Liz."

"It's okay. I know."

Isabel looked up at him. "How is she? Liz, I mean?"

Alex hesitated. "Honestly? I don't know. She's not been very open with how she's feeling. But...she's hurting. A lot. More than I've ever seen her hurt. And it scares me because when she was here, at least Maria and I could keep an eye on her, you know? But now..." He took a deep breath. "Now she's out of the state, and has no one to watch after her and...I'm afraid of what might happen."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia finished bandaging the little boy's arm and she smiled at him. "There you go."

"Thank you," he said shyly.

"Yes, thank you," the boy's mother said, looking pale and anxious.

"You're welcome. That should take care of it until the paramedics get a chance to examine him," she said. She glanced down the line of people waiting to be checked out by paramedics for the non-life threatening injuries.

She had already helped check out and bandage at least thirty people, and her headache from the vision she had earlier was now pressing against her temples, making her feel like her head could explode at any given moment. She was just glad she was still well enough to help. Of course, since she was from Sunnydale, California, she'd taken first aid back in junior high. It was one of the basic requirements of 'Survival on a Hellmouth 101.' So it was kind of like her duty to make sure these people got the help they needed.

Cordelia looked around and spotted Wesley trying to help bandage a woman's arm a few people back. She walked over to where he was standing.

"Oh, good, Cordelia. What do I do? The wound won't stop bleeding."

She moved closer so she could get a better look. She quickly placed her hand over the wound. "It's a pretty deep laceration. Do you have any medical gauze?"

"Yeah, hold on." Wesley balanced the first aid kit the paramedics had given him on one knee while he sorted through it.

"Ma'am, are you in any pain?" Cordelia asked, noticing the woman's pale face.

"No. But the sight of blood makes me sick."

"Here's the gauze."

She quickly took it from Wesley and wound it around the woman's arm tightly. "Keep your other hand over it and try to keep your injured arm elevated as much as possible. When you get up to the paramedics, be sure and tell them that it's not causing you any pain."

The woman nodded and she and Wesley moved on to the next group of people. "Will she be okay?" he asked quietly.

"Hopefully. But if she's not in pain with a wound like that, I'm inclined to think possible nerve damage."

Wesley gave her a look, but she didn't see it. Her gaze was locked on Angel, who was talking to Kate Lockley.

Correction.

Listening to Kate Lockley.

Cordelia set her jaw, straightened her shoulders, and marched over to where they were standing.

"What I want to know is how the hell you knew there was a bomb!" she heard Kate snap. "Did one of your blood sucking friends set it up?"

Angel didn't answer. He regarded her with a weary gaze.

"Come on, Angel. Fess up. Did your true nature finally show through? Did you do it?"

"Excuse me. Angel is too nice to say something that might offend you. I, on the other hand, don't have a problem that," Cordelia said, her eyes dark.

"Why don't you stay out of it? It's really none of your business," Kate snapped.

"That's where you're wrong. Angel is part of my family!"

"That's something to be proud of," Kate snorted. "Related to a monster."

Cordelia saw Angel flinch out of the corner of her eye and she barely resisted the urged to reach out and slap the other women. "You ungrateful wench. Angel's saved your life more than once. He's saved mine more than I can count. He helps people!"

"He's a demon."

"No, he's not. He's a vampire. There's a difference."

"You would know."

"That's right, I would. Look, I'm sorry that your father was killed. But Angel didn't do it."

"No, but his kind did," Kate said darkly.

"And you're a bigot," Cordelia countered.

Kate glared at her. "My problem isn't with you. It's with Angel. You don't want to be on my bad side," she warned.

Cordelia laughed. "You think I'm afraid of you because you're a cop? Well, let me tell you something. I lived on a Hellmouth for 18 years. Not much scares me anymore. And you want to talk about being on someone's bad side? You don't want to be on mine. You think I'm being a bitch now? This is me being _nice."_

"Cordelia," Angel said quietly, putting one hand on her shoulder. 

She turned to face him."What?"

"Don't."

"Angel, I'm sick of her being in your face all the time. And if you won't stand up for yourself to her, then I'll do it for you," she snapped. Cordelia faced Kate again. "You want to know how we knew there was a bomb? I get visions. Flashes of things that will happen."

"Her visions are how we know when people are in trouble," Wesley spoke up.

Cordelia was surprised by his voice She'd been so caught up in her anger she hadn't noticed him. She wondered how long he'd been standing there.

"Visions. Why doesn't that surprise me?" Kate replied sarcastically. "And what kind of freak show act do you perform?"

"Freak show act?" Cordelia repeated, narrowing her eyes. "Freak show act?"

Wesley must have realized that Kate's last snide comment had been the last straw, as he moved closer to her. "Cordelia, it would be unwise to assault an officer of the law."

She shook his hand off her arm and moved a step closer to Kate. "Let's get something straight. First of all, thanks to one of those headed-splitting, "freak show" visions I had, we saved a couple hundred people's lives today And secondly, you should be on your hands and knees right now thanking The Powers That Be for the three of us being in this city. Because God knows that the L.A.P.D. isn't equipped to fight demons and bad vampires. Furthermore, even if they were equipped, they wouldn't be able to deal with it and remain sane. Look at the fine example that's your life. Or lack thereof!"

"Now we just a minute --"

"No, you wait. Do you have any idea how many people I've seen die? Ones that I know? That I was friends with? My high school graduation was a God-damned blood bath. But I'm still sane enough and intelligent enough to know that Angel is one of the good guys. And if you don't know that by now, you should get yourself a good therapist!"

Cordelia turned around and walked away, followed by Angel and Wesley.

Kate stared after them open-mouthed.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"We should do a little re-con, don't you think?" Wesley asked as the three of them walked down the sidewalk.

Angel glanced over at him. "Yeah." He looked over at Cordelia, whom he could tell was still more than a little upset. "Why don't you try to find out who all was staying at that hotel?

"Got it," Wes agreed and he hurried off.

"Cordelia.

"Angel, she had it coming. So don't try and make me feel guilty about it," she warned.

"I wasn't." He touched her arm. "I was going to say --"

Cordelia turned to face him. "What?"

"Thank you."

She blinked in surprise. "Thank you?" She repeated.

"For having that kind of faith in me after everything that's happened."

Her eyes softened. I meant what I said, Angel. You and Wes... you're my family now And nobody messes with my family."

Angel had no doubts that she meant it He had a feeling she'd face down any number of demons or vampires or cops with attitudes if circumstances need be The change in her from the first time he had met her to now was remarkable.

"So. What do you want me to do?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Go home. Get some sleep. Wes and I can handle the research tonight."

Cordelia gave him a doubtful look. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Well, if you need anything --"

"I know your number. It's number one on speed dial."

"I'm number one on speed dial?" He nodded. She smiled. "See you tomorrow?"

"At the office. He leaned down and kissed her for head, surprising them both a bit.

"Right. Good luck with the research," she said as she turned and crossed the street.

Angel watched and made sure she was safe before he headed off in the opposite direction.

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Nasedo smiled as he leaned against the lamp post. So the vampire with a soul really did have a weakness. He had a feeling that knowledge would come in handy very soon.


	5. Chapter 5

Alex was sitting at his computer, getting ready to log onto the Internet when the telephone rang. He glanced at the clock, and wondered who would be calling him at 9:52 p.m. He reached over and picked up the receiver. "Hello?"

"Alex?"

"Liz?"

"Yeah, it's me."

He frowned. She sounded tired, but it might have just been the connection. "Everything okay? You still at the Holiday Inn in L.A.?"

"Actually that's sort of why I called."

Alex heard her hesitate. Not a good sign, he thought.

"I wanted to call before the 10 o'clock news so no one panicked or anything."

Nervousness lodged itself in his stomach, but Alex had never been one to lose his cool and calm demeanor until he'd at least *heard* the problem. And even then, most of the time he could stay calmer than Maria. "Okay." He reached over and turned on the t.v.

"Okay, first of all, I'm totally fine. I wasn't hurt or anything. And I hadn't even unpacked, so I didn't lose any of my stuff."

"Liz, you're stalling."

"I know, I know. I just don't want you to freak out when I tell you..."

She kept talking but Alex was no longer listening. His eyes were glued to the news.

"Earlier this morning, a bomb exploded at this L.A. hotel," the reporter said, motioning to the remains behind her. "There were numerous counts of minor injuries, but so far no one has been listed in critical condition. Investigators have no suspects fo far, but say they expect to apprehend the perpetrator soon..."

"Oh, my God. Oh, my God," Alex muttered. "Liz, what happened?" She explained to him about the evacuation, and he shook his head. "Liz, this is the second life-threatening even you've had since you got to L.A. yesterday. Something's not right. Come back to Roswell. Please."

"Alex, it's a coincidence. I can't come back. You know why."

"Liz, I know you're hurting. I know. You've been one of my best friends since the fifth grade. And I'm sorry that you're hurting. But if you come home, we can get through this together--you, me and Maria."

"Alex, I know you're worried. But I'm okay. I have to go. Love you. Bye."

She hung up before he had a chance to protest.

"Damn," he muttered.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Cordelia ran._

_She didn't know where she was going but she kept running. Twists, turns -- she ran in the darkness, stumbling around corners and bouncing off walls as she tried to escape the thing there's chasing her._

_"Cordelia," it said in a sing song voice. "You don't know who I am so how can you hide from me?"_

_She wasn't sure if it was even behind her anymore. It could be and front of her or behind her or above her..._

_It could be anywhere._

_She raced around another corner. And ran directly into Wesley._

_Relief washed over her. "Wes, thank God! Something is after me."_

_Wesley looked down at her, his face emotionless but his eyes as cold as steel. "Yes. Something is."_

_Sh stared back at him, confused. "Well, you have to help me!"_

_"The only thing I can do for you is kill you," he replied, his mouth twisting into a wicked smile._

_Cordelia backed away, horrified. It took her a minute to figure it out and when she did, her eyes widened._

_It's not Wesley, she thought._

_He advanced on her, and without thinking, she ducked under his arm, grabbed a stake out of her back pocket and jammed it into the guy's heart as she spun around._

_Buffy would have been proud._

_The guy slumped to the ground, but didn't explode into dust._

_"Oh, my God," she whispered._

_She had just killed a person!_

_A person who looked exactly like one of her best friends._

_But it hadn't been Wesley._

_It couldn't have been._

_Could it?_

_Cordelia backed away from the body. "No," she whispered. She turned around and fled, this time running into Angel. She threw her arms around him, crying._

_He grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and slammed her up against the wall. "Who are you? What have you done with Cordelia?" he demanded, glaring at her with feral yellow eyes._

_"Angel, it's me!"_

_Angel wrapped his hands around her throat. "Tell me where she is or I'll kill you!"_

_She tried to pry his fingers away. "Angel, please! I need your help! I think I may have killed Wesley!"_

_Angel dragged her down the corridor, keeping one hand around her neck. He turned the corner and saw Wesley's body on the floor, a stake through his heart. Then he turned back to her, tightening his grip on her throat. "Is she dead, too? What are you?"_

_She choked on her words, struggling for breath. "I'm...Cor...de..lia!"_

_Angel growled at her and began to strangle her until her lifeless body dropped to the floor uselessly. He stared down at her for a moment, and then turned away when suddenly the other body on the floor started to move._

_He watched as Wesley reached up, pulled the wooden stake out of his heart, and sat up. Wesley smiled as he saw Cordelia dead on the floor only feet away. "Wow. I didn't think you had it in you. Angelus, yeah, but you? I'm impressed." He stood up and laughed at the shock on Angel's face. "And you thought she wasn't a good actress."_

_Angel stared at him in disbelief. "What?"_

_"All this time you thought you could tell the difference between one of your only real friends and an imposter. Turns out you didn't really know her at all. Poor little lonely Cordelia." Wesley began to laugh._

_"What are you?"_

_"I was your redemption, but you've thrown it all away." He motioned to her lifeless body._

_Angel sank to his knees, cradling her head in his lap. "Oh God. What have I done?" he whispered, tears flooding his eyes._

_"You can't help that you're just a monster at heart." Wesley handed him a the wooden stake that only moments ago had been lodged in his own chest. "Go on. Do it. Your life's not worth much now anyway."_

_Angel took the stake from him, staring at if for only the briefest of moments. Then he plunged it into his heart._

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia sat up, gasping for breath. "No!"

It took her a few seconds to realize she was in her bedroom. She relaxed a bit and looked around. Nothing appeared out of place. Her heartbeat slowed to it's normal pace again as she took a few deep breaths and laid back against her pillows.

It has just been a dream.

A horrible, horrible dream.

She felt Dennis smooth the hair out of her eyes and she relaxed a little more. At least she knew she wasn't alone.

Cordelia turned over onto her side and stared at the red digits on her clock. She watched the minutes change, and then the hours. A nervous ball of anxiety shot hoops in her stomach.

She never went back to sleep.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Isabel awoke to the sound of her bedroom window sliding open. She froze in fear for a moment until she heard someone climbing inside, and she leapt out of bed, grabbed a lamp, and ripped the cord from the wall, prepared to swing it at the person.

"Isabel, it's me!"

She closed her eyes. "Michael, God, don't do that! You nearly scared me to death!" she snapped.

"Sorry."

Isabel let out a sigh and replaced the lamp on her dresser. "It's 3 in the morning. What are you doing here?"

"I had a vision. At least, I think it was a vision."

She felt herself tense. "What did you see?"

Michael hesitated, then met her eyes. "Liz. And I think she's in trouble."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel sat at his new desk, staring down at the morning paper but not really seeing it.

He had spent all yesterday afternoon and evening harassing local demons at the bars they frequented in an attempt to find out who was behind yesterday's bombing, only to come to the conclusion that no one knew a thing.

He had gone back to Doyle's old apartment and spent the night trying to get some sleep. Just as he it finally drifted off, he was startled out of sleep by a sudden inexplicable anxiety.

At that moment, Wesley walked in. He walked over and dropped a folder on Angel's desk in front of him.

"Is this the --?"

"List of names of everyone in the hotel yesterday."

"How did you --?"

"Long story involving a Plaetzu Demon. You don't want to know."

Angel pulled the list out of the folder and glanced through the names. "No one familiar."

"No, to me, either. But that doesn't mean that someone on this list doesn't have connections to Wolfram and Hart."

"Good point. We should start running background checks."

"Yes," Wesley agreed. They looked at one another and then over at the computer. No one said anything for a moment. Then, "I'm afraid I haven't been very forthcoming in the knowledge of modern technology."

"That definitely makes two of us," Angel agreed regretfully.

They both looked to the door when it opened and Cordelia walked in. Wesley looked at Angel, a startled expression on his face, one that probably very much mirrored Angel's own.

"Morning," she muttered.

Angel couldn't help staring. She was wearing a white blouse that was slightly wrinkled, and a long black skirt. Her hair was back in a loose ponytail. Her face was ashen and there were circles under her eyes. In the entire time that Angel had known Cordelia Chase, he'd never seen her look less than perfect.

But now...

Something was definitely not right.

He met Wesley's eyes, then looked past him to Cordelia again. "Wesley found the list of names of the hotel guests."

"Good," she answered vaguely. "That will... help."

He frowned and watched as she dropped onto the sofa.

"Uh, Cordelia would you like some coffee?" Wesley offered.

When she didn't respond, Angel stood up, walked over to the couch and sat down beside her. "Cordelia?"

She blinked and turned her face to look at him. "What?"

"Are you okay?"

"Yes." She rose to her feet and moved to Angel's desk. She picked up the list of names and held it up. "This it?"

Wesley looked at her worriedly. "That's it."

"When do we start the background checks?" She asked.

Angel and Wesley exchanged a glance. "Are any of the names familiar to you?" He watched as Cordelia's gaze travelled down the paper.

"No. None of them," she said finally, disappointment obvious in her voice. "I'm sorry."

"Hey. Wesley and I didn't recognize any of them either," he told her.

"Yeah, but I get the visions. I should know these things. God only knows how much time it's going to take to do background checks on all of these people," she said in frustration.

"Cordelia, you only get what The Powers That Be gives you to work with," Wesley pointed out.

"It's not your fault," Angel said quietly.

She didn't reply as she moved over to the computer desk and sat down.

Angel looked at Wesley and sighed inwardly. It was going to be a long day.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alex was surprised to find Isabel Evans on his doorstep for the second morning in a row. This time, however, he was wide awake. Because after Liz's phone call he hadn't been able to sleep.

"Hey. Can I come in?" Isabel asked anxiously.

He noted that while she looked as beautiful as she always did, she also looked tired. He stepped aside and let her in. "Is everything okay?"

"Michael had a vision this morning."

Uh, oh.

"Bad vision, I take it?"

"He thinks Liz is in danger."

A wave of relief washed over him. "She's okay. She called me last night. She was... almost in an accident yesterday but she is fine now."

Isabel stared at him. "You're sure?"

He noticed the worry in her voice. " Yeah."

"Good. I'll--tell Michael. He will be glad to hear she's all right."

Alex nodded. "Okay."

"So, then, I should probably go. And tell him." She didn't make any move toward the door.

"Or you could call him."

"Call him?" Isabel repeated.

"Yeah. He motioned to the phone "I mean, if you would rather stay here and hang out for awhile, you could use our phone to call Michael."

She smiled. "I'd like that."

"Me too," Alex agreed, returning her smile.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liz walked down the sidewalk, carrying a sack from one of the local shops, Hodginson's. She had found a cute stuffed pig she knew Maria would like, and a CD she knew Alex had been wanting for awhile.

She had just been resting in her hotel room, watching old movies on cable But after a while all of her thoughts wandered to Max.

And she had to get out.

So she'd gone shopping, determined to tune out her thoughts. She'd hailed a cab and had the driver drop her off on a heavy-business section of town so she could do some shopping.

Liz paused and looked into a shop window.

"I said it's over, Ted!" a woman snapped.

"But... you mean everything to me," Ted whispered.

Liz cringed at the words.

_"You do have a destiny, Max. You just heard it. I can't stand in the way of it."_

_"But you mean everything to me," Max whispered._

Liz squeezed her eyes shut, trying to prevent the scene from unfolding in her mind, trying to block out the sound of his voice.

"Excuse me," a woman said as she bumped into Liz.

Her eyes opened. "It's okay." She shook her head and walked away. That's exactly what she had to keep doing.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia drew in a deep breath as she stepped outside. She rubbed the back of her neck with one hand, trying to ease her tense muscles.

Damn dream, she thought.

She shuddered as she remembered driving the stake into Wesley's heart, and then again as she recalled the feel of angel's hands wrapped around her neck, squeezing the life out of her.

"It was just a dream," she murmured. Jesus. When did I become such a wuss? I've faced countless demons, vampires and nasty creatures in the past four years of my life barely flinching and now I'm getting wigged by a dream.

And it wasn't like she could say, "Hey, Wes, Angel, guess what I dreamed about last night."

Cordelia sighed and walked down the street. She told them she needed to go to lunch early and get some air, that she still had a headache from yesterday's vision.

She didn't, really, but it was believable. And she was realizing that lying to Angel and Wesley was much more difficult than she had imagine. Not only was it difficult... but she hated it. It made her feel guilty.

Cordelia paused in the middle of the sidewalk, frowning. Something wasn't right. She turned around in a slow circle, but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

She didn't know what was wrong -- but it was a strong feeling. Like she got right before she received a vision, only different.

She took another deep breath and looked around again, more carefully this time. A couple having an argument across the street. A child crying in her stroller as her mother hurried down the sidewalk. A girl with dark hair walking across the crosswalk and carrying a couple of shopping bags.

And a dark blue sedan headed straight for her.

Cordelia's eyes widened. " Hey! Look out!" She shouted.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liz waited for the light to change and give her the okay to cross the street. That was when she saw him.

Standing on the corner, staring at her, his eyes dark and intense as they always were.

"Max," she whispered. She blinked a couple times and when she looked again, Max was gone, replaced by a guy who only vaguely resembled him. "I'm losing it."

Just then the light changed. She started across the crosswalk and was about halfway across the street when she heard someone scream, " Hey! Look out!"

Mere seconds later she was hit by the same woman at a dead run, and thrown out of the way as a car raced by, missing her only by inches.

She lay in a daze for a few seconds and sat up, her bags scattered around. Then Liz saw the other woman, whom apparently wasn't as lucky a she had been.

The woman lay unconscious less than two feet away from her, blood seeping from a head wound.

Liz's eyes widened in horror. "Oh, my God!"


	6. Chapter 6

Detective Kate Lockley arrived on the scene of the hit and run at the same time the ambulance did. She parked her squad car and jumped out, rushing to the girl's side. "Are you injured?"

The wide-eyed girl shook her head, tear tracks staining her pretty face. "No, I'm okay. It's her. She knocked me out of the way."

Kate peered over the girl's shoulder and froze. "Oh, shit," she muttered.

"Out of the way!" One of the paramedics shouted.

Kate pulled the other girl aside, allowing the paramedics to do their job. "Did you see the car? Or the driver?"

"Yeah, but it all happened so fast." The girl trembled and stared as the paramedics worked on Cordelia.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to come down to the station with me."

The girl nodded absently, still staring at Cordelia. "Yeah, of course."

Kate put a hand on her shoulder. "She'll be okay. I know her. And she's a fighter."

The girl looked up at her hopefully.

"She'll be okay," Kate said again.

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1:54 p.m.

Angel stared at the clock on wall. Cordelia had gone out to lunch nearly two hours ago and still hadn't returned.

Wesley was also clock-watching, in between drinking coffee and pacing the floor worriedly. "This isn't like her."

"No," Angel agreed. "It's not. And I've got a bad feeling about this."

Wesley stopped pacing and stared at him. "If she's not back in 15 minutes, I'm going out to look for her."

"Something was bothering her this morning. And I don't think it was a headache."

"I agree, but why would she lie?"

Angel rubbed his forehead. "I don't know, Wesley."

"Maybe she met someone and didn't want to tell us."

Angel shook his head. "No, she was upset about something."

Wesley sighed and ran one hand through his hair. "Do you think something may have happened to her?" he asked.

Every muscle in Angel's body tensed at the thought. What could have happened to make her so shaken? An endless list of possibilities ran through his mind, not a single one good and a few making him feel sick to his stomach.

"Let's go find her," Angel said, rising to his feet.

"Angel, the sun is out."

"We'll take the car." Just as he headed for the door, the telephone rang. He reached over and picked up the receiver. "Cordelia?"

There was a pause. "No. Sorry. It's Kate Lockley."

Angel frowned and shook his head at Wesley to let him know it wasn't Cordelia. "Yeah?"

"I would have called sooner or but I had to talk to a witness. Listen, you should head down to County General. Cordelia was in an accident."

"An accident?" Angel repeated, his eyes widening.

Wesley stared at him, eyebrows furrowed.

"She was the victim of a hit and run. They took her to County a little over an hour ago."

"Oh, my… Is she all right?" Angel stared back at Wesley.

"All I know is that she's not critical."

"Okay. Thanks." He dropped the phone into its cradle and immediately headed for the door, with Wesley right behind him. "Cordelia's in the hospital. Hit and run."

"Good Lord," Wesley muttered.

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Wesley sat in a chair next to Cordelia's hospital bed, his elbows resting on his knees and his head in his hands. She'd been very lucky - as if being hit by a car was lucky - she only had three broken ribs and a mild concussion. The doctors said she would be fine.

The problem was she hadn't regained consciousness, and that wasn't a good thing.

He sighed and sat up. Angel was sitting in a chair on the other side of the bed, his elbows resting on the bedside, his head leaning on his hands as he stared at the white blanket covering Cordelia.

The room was silent other than the occasional beeping from her I.V.

"Angel, do you want some coffee?" Wesley asked quietly, unable to sit still any longer.

"No."

Wesley barely heard him. "Okay. I'll be back." He took one last look at Cordelia before he turned and left the room.

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Angel gripped Cordelia's hands between both of his pressing his lips to the back of it. "Cordelia…" he whispered. There were so many things he wanted to say to her, but couldn't put them into words.

He suddenly remembered something that Doyle had said when Angel first met up with him and Cordelia in L.A.

"She has a very humanizing influence."

It was funny because Doyle had only known her for a few hours when he made the comment, and it wasn't until now that Angel really reflected upon the truth of the statement.

When he had left Sunnydale, he'd been miserable. He'd been looking for an excuse to give up when first returned to L.A. And that's when he had met up with Doyle and Cordelia.

Doyle had died, but Cordelia... she was still here. With him. By choice.

She had risked her own life time and time again to help him in his endless battle of redemption, and now... now he knew there was going to be an end. One-day he was going to become human. Not today or tomorrow, but someday.

And it had been largely thanks to her. Because she didn't give up on him and she wouldn't let him give up on himself.

"Hey. What's with the water-works? I'm not really up for a swim."

Angel looked up, startled, and saw Cordelia staring back him. He was almost as startled to realize he was crying. "Thank God you're awake." He gently brushed a strand of hair out of her face.

"Why are you crying?" She asked in confusion.

"Because... I was afraid that I had lost you," he admitted quietly.

"You can't get rid of me that easily."

"Good, because I would never want to be rid of you." He smiled at her gently. He heard footsteps at the door and looked up to see Wesley standing there. "Sleeping Beauty woke up."

Wesley smiled and walked over, and kissed Cordelia's forehead. "You had us really worried. How are you feeling?"

"Like I got hit by a car. Although I must say, it's not quite as painful as having a metal pole rammed through your stomach." She struggled to sit up and winced in pain.

Angel frowned and gently pressed her back against the pillows. "Easy, Cordy."

"I should go get a doctor," Wesley said quickly.

"No, wait," she protested. "There's something I have to tell you guys. It wasn't an accident."

"Yeah, we know. It was a hit and run."

"No, I mean, there was this girl... the car was headed straight for her. It was a blue sedan."

Angel sat down on the bed beside her. "There's more, isn't there?"

Cordelia nodded, grimacing, and Angel wasn't sure if it was from the pain or from something she didn't want to say. "This girl...I think she was the one from my vision the other night. From the train station." She glanced at Wesley, who looked worried. Then she looked back at Angel. "Someone's after her, Angel. I don't know who or why, but someone wants her dead. You have to find her."

Angel met her eyes and fought an internal battle: stay with Cordelia or go out and try to save the girl. More than anything at that moment he wanted to stay, if for no other reason but to convince himself she was okay, that she was still breathing. But he knew he didn't have time for that simple comfort. Angel knew what he had to do.

He closed his eyes and kissed her forehead gently. "I'll be back soon. Get some rest." Angel looked at Wesley. "Make sure she's okay."

Wesley nodded. "I'll get the doctor in here to check on her."

Angel stood up. He was going to find the girl, and then he was going to find the person or people who were after her, the ones responsible for Cordy's injuries. And when he found them, they were going to be sorry they'd ever learned to drive a car.

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Liz was still shaken up as she returned to her hotel room. Detective Lockley assured her that the woman who'd saved her was fine. She'd wanted to go see for herself, but the detective wouldn't tell her the woman's name or even which hospital she'd been taken to.

"These aren't people you want to get involved with. They're trouble," Det. Lockley had warned her.

But how could someone who saved her life be trouble?

Liz thought about Max, how he saved her life at the Crashdown that day. He risked his own life by using his powers and healing the gunshot wound in her stomach in order to save her life.

That day had changed her forever. The way she looked at things, her beliefs, everything that made Liz Parker what she was had been altered the moment Max Evans and healed her with a touch.

Thinking about that day and the stress of this day's events brought tears to her eyes. She fumbled with her hotel security card and started to insert it into the door when she realized the door was already open a crack.

She took a step back and glanced up and down the hallway. There wasn't anyone around but her.

She listened for a moment, but didn't hear any sound coming from the room.

Liz took a deep breath, pushed the door open and stepped inside cautiously. The room was trashed: the mattress was off the bed, the sheets and blankets strewn across the floor. The pillow had been cut open, feathers everywhere. The paintings on the wall had been torn off and destroyed. The curtains were still hanging but had been torn to shreds, like a giant cat would do.

Her duffel bag had been dumped over; all of her extra clothes were gone. Her jewelry -- what she hadn't been wearing anyway --was also taken. The rest of her money was gone too.

Liz was thankful she had decided against bringing her journal with her.

She pressed her hand to her mouth, realization dawning on her. The hit and run hadn't been an accident. The person driving the car had wanted to kill her... the person from the train station two days ago; the hotel bombing... someone wanted her dead.

And she was in a city full of strangers, with no one -- Max, or Sheriff Valenti. -- to protect her. She had no money left, and she couldn't risk going to the police. If someone was after her, it was because she knew the truth about who Max, Michael, Isabel and Tess were, and she couldn't put them in danger, no matter what happened to her.

Something suddenly caught her eye. It was a small scrap of paper on the floor at her feet.

Liz knelt down and picked it up. It was the Angel Investigations business card.

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Kate Lockley nearly jumped out of her seat when her office door closed. She hadn't even seen it open. "Angel." She stood up abruptly.

Angel didn't move from the shadows of the doorway. "I need to know everything about the hit and run."

"Unfortunately, we don't know much more than you do," she replied.

"Who was the girl? The one that Cordelia saved?"

Kate narrowed her eyes. "She was a witness, Angel. You know I can't give you that information."

"The person driving the car wasn't trying to hit Cordelia."

"I find that hard to believe."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Angel demanded.

"Just that when you deal with demons and evil things, eventually they're going to deal with you." She regretted the words instantly.

For a long moment, Angel just stared at her. "The girl that she saved. This isn't the first attempt on her life. They'll come after her again. And if she dies, her blood will be on your hands."

"Not everything that happens is demon-related. There are a lot of bad humans in the world, too."  
Angel turned to leave.

"Angel, if you go after a human because you want revenge for Cordelia's accident, I will come after you," she warned.

He turned to look at her again. "You do what you have to do, Kate," he said quietly. "And so will I."

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Wesley returned to Cordelia's room from the cafeteria a little while later. No sooner had he made it to the doorway, then did he see Cordelia's things stuffed into a hospital bag on her bed. She had gotten dressed, and was sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, leaning over and tying her shoes.

"Cordelia! What are you doing? You shouldn't be out of bed!" Wesley said in shock.

She finished her shoe and stood up. "I'm going home."

"Cordelia three hours ago you were unconscious with a concussion! The doctors are releasing you already?" Wesley was dumbfounded.

"No, I'm releasing myself," she said calmly.

"You're not ready to be out of the hospital!"

"Because of a couple broken ribs and a concussion?" Cordelia rolled her eyes. "I have worse headaches when I get visions."

"For God sake, Cordelia, you were hit by a car! At least spend the night and wait until morning for the doctor's ok."

"No. But thanks for the concern, Wes. Besides, Angel needs our help, and what help are we going to be from a hospital?"

"Angel can survive for one night on his own. And if that is your argument, I'll go help him -- you stay here and rest."

"No offense, Wes, but you don't even know how to turn on a computer."

"A computer?" he asked in confusion. "Why do we need a computer?"

"Because I really doubt Kate's going to be very forthcoming information-wise so we're going to need to hack into the police records to find out about the girl."

"You can do that?"

She smiled brightly at him. "With a little help from an old friend."

Wesley shook his head. "I'll go get your laptop and bring it to you."

"No need. I'm going home tonight."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Cordelia. You're staying here and that's final," he said determinedly.

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Angel walked down the hallway to Cordelia's room and froze in the doorway at the sight of the emptiness. There was no sign of Wesley or Cordelia. He turned and ran to the nurse's station.

"Can I help you?" the nurse, Susan asked him, smiling.

"I'm looking for Cordelia Chase. She's not in her room."

The nurse frowned. "Well, I just came on duty. I'll call the nurse who just left."

At that moment, Angel's cell phone rang.

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"Wesley, what the hell were you thinking?" Angel exploded as he stood in the living room of Cordelia's apartment. "How could you let her leave? She just got hit by a car!"

"I tried to talk her out of it, she insisted," Wesley said defensively. "Believe me, it wasn't my idea."

"You could have stopped her!"

The former Watcher scoffed. "Really? Are we talking about the same woman?"

Angel glared at him. "She has no business being out of the hospital! All I asked you to do was stay there and make sure she was all right. Was that too difficult? God, no wonder you got fired from the Council."

"Now wait just a minute --

"Would you two knock it off?" Cordelia snapped as she walked shakily out of her bedroom and down the hall towards them. "Dennis just locked himself in the bedroom!" Angel and Wesley both hurried towards her to help her, but she waved them away. "I can walk, thank you. I'm not an invalid."

Angel stared at her. "You should be in the hospital."

"I think I've spent enough time in hospitals to last a lifetime. The rooms are all devoid of color, the food is like, all eww... and don't even get me started on those tacky hospital gowns."

"Cordelia, you were hit by a car."

"So? I've fought demons, vampires, survived a cheating boyfriend, a demon-pregnancy and once had a metal rod rammed through my stomach. I'm hardly going to let a stupid car keep me down." She waved her hand dismissively. "Besides, I'm not much use to anyone in a hospital bed."

He walked over until he was standing right in front of her. "Cordelia, you don't need to take unnecessary risks with your life in order to help me."

"Angel, this isn't just about you. There's a girl out there who is in danger. And unless something happened that I don't know about, my guess is Detective Lockley refused to give you any information on who she is or where she's staying. Am I right?"

Angel closed his eyes and nodded.

"Which means that we're going to need to hack into the L.A.P.D.'s files, and since the two of you are against learning anything pertaining to modern technology, you need me." Cordelia held his gaze.

"Yeah, we do," he agreed softly, resisting the urge to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

She smiled, and walked somewhat unsteadily to the kitchen table, where she sat down in front of her laptop and grabbed the portable phone and dialed a number.

Angel watched as she waited for the other person to answer the phone. He didn't know who she was calling, he just hoped it wasn't Kate Lockley. A moment later, a brilliant smile lit up her beautiful face

"Willow? Hi, it's Cordelia."

He looked back at Wesley, who was frowning, apparently still upset. Angel walked over to him "Wes, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have blamed you for Cordelia's leaving the hospital."

"You know, Angel, I care about her, too. She's my friend and I worry about her."

"I know you do," Angel answered quietly

"She's very stubborn, isn't she?" Wesley looked over at her, but kept his voice low so he didn't disrupt her phone call. "But she's also more intelligent than people give her credit for. And much stronger, as well. However, there is something about her -- a certain... vulnerability and innocence that makes her a truly unique individual. She's an amazing woman."

"I know," Angel said.

Wesley looked at him sideways. "Angel, this may be a bit... out of line of me to say, but... well, I know you care for her. But your actions toward her as of late have seemed rather... over-protective."

"Over-protective?"

"Yes."

"Wesley, after everything that's happened recently, how can I not be?"

"Don't get me wrong, Angel. I want to make sure she's safe, too."

"Then we're agreed."

"I just think there may be... well, perhaps, an underlying reason for how protective you are of her."

"She's my friend, Wesley. My good friend. I can trust her. Of course I care for her. If anything happened to her --" he cut himself off, not even wanting to think about it.

"Yes, I know."

Angel's gaze drifted back to Cordelia, who smiled in triumph. "We're in! Thanks, Will. Call you this weekend. Bye." She hung up the phone. "L.A.P.D. files are now up for grabs, so --" Cordelia suddenly cried out, grabbing her head.

Angel and Wesley were both at her side in an instant. Angel waited, grimacing and wishing these visions didn't come with mind-splitting pain.

When the vision ended, she gasped for breath, and then winced from the pain in her ribs. Tears flooded her eyes. "It's her. The girl. She's being chased by a vampire. Headed towards our new office on 23rd Street."

Once again Angel felt torn between duty and friendship. Cordelia had slumped against Wesley for support, in obvious pain. Angel swore under his breath and stood up. "I'll be back soon. Take care of her," he instructed Wesley.

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Liz glanced around the dark street nervously. She only had a couple of blocks left before she would arrive at Angel Investigations. A slight breeze ruffled her hair.

She heard a foot fall behind her and she froze. She turned around slowly but there was no one there.

"This is the part where the bad guy turns out to be in front of me and not behind me," she muttered under her breath.

"How right you are."

She whirled around to face the person who had spoken. "Who are you?" she demanded, proud her voice came out strong and steady.

"No one you know, but let's just say I'm hungry." The man grinned at her maliciously.

Liz's eyes narrowed, and before she could stop herself, she pulled her fist back and then buried it in his face. His head snapped back.

Liz was partially shocked and partially proud of herself. All of those years hanging out with Maria had really rubbed off on her. Her good feeling quickly dissipated as the man growled, his face morphing and showing animal-like features with fangs bared.

Liz didn't even attempt to suppress the scream of terror that ripped from her throat. She turned and ran.

She knew he was following her -- she could hear his footsteps on the pavement only feet behind her.

This is it. I'm going to die, she realized as she rounded the corner, the thing only steps behind her.

Someone reached out from the shadows of the alley and grabbed her arm. "Stay here." The voice was vaguely familiar and she watched as the man removed a wooden stake from his black duster.

Liz stared in confusion, overwhelmed by uncertainty.

The man chasing her turned the corner, yellow eyes glowing and letting out a savage growl.

Liz shrunk back against the wall and watched in horror as the man in the black duster drove the stake into the other man's heart. Her would-be attacker exploded into a cloud of dust.

She blinked. What had just happened?

The man in the black duster turned toward her. The light from the street lamp revealed his face, and she gasped. It was the same man who saved her from the mugger at the train station two nights's ago.

"Angel," she whispered.

He nodded and looked around. "I thought you agreed it wasn't safe to walk alone after dark."

Liz was at a loss for words.

"I think someone is after you. Come back with me to my friend's house. You'll be safe there."

She didn't hesitate. "I think that's a good idea."

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Angel opened the door to Cordelia's apartment and held it opened for Liz, who hung back in the door frame

"Are you sure your friend won't mind my being here?" she asked hesitantly.

"She won't. Come on."

She stepped inside and glanced around.

"Angel, did you find the--" Wesley stepped out of the kitchen and looked at Liz. "--girl," he finished. "Hello."

"Wes, this is Liz Parker. Liz, this is my friend, Wesley Pryce."

Wesley reached out his hand and Liz shook it. "Nice to meet you," he said kindly.

"It's nice to meet you, too."

"How's Cordelia?" Angel asked worriedly.

"She's in bed."

"Sleeping?"

"No, actually, she wanted to wait up for you. I was just making her some tea."

Angel followed Wesley into the kitchen. "I'll take it to her."

Wesley handed him the mug. "How is the girl?"

"We haven't really had a chance to talk. I think she was in shock most of the way here."

"From the vampire attack? Was she bitten?"

"No. I meant in shock from seeing him explode into dust." Angel glanced over his shoulder.

"Of course. Well, I'll keep her company while you check on Cordelia."

"Good idea." Angel headed down the hallway towards Cordelia's bedroom. He paused in the doorway for a moment and stared at her in the darkness. She was lying on her side, faced away from him, her breathing calm and even.

"Don't just stand there. Come on in," he heard her say softly.

Angel smiled and did as told. He sat on the chair next to her bedside. "Wes made you some tea."

Cordelia struggled to sit up, and a moment later, invisible hands fluffed up her pillows. "Thanks, Dennis," she told her ghost. She accepted the mug from Angel and sipped the tea, closing her eyes. "Wesley may not be able to make coffee, but no one makes tea like he does." She smiled and opened her eyes again.

Angel frowned at how pale she looked. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay."

He didn't believe her, but he didn't tell her that.

"How's the girl?"

"Safe thanks to you."

"Actually, I'm pretty sure you're the one who saved her from being a blood donor," she pointed out.

"But if it hadn't been for your vision, I wouldn't have known she was in trouble."

"Well, I'm just the messenger. It's the PTB that send me the visions."

Angel felt a wave of guilt. He hadn't thought about it much, but he wondered if she ever felt like she wasn't as much a part of the team as he and Wesley were.

"Cordelia, I know I don't say this as much as I should, but, Wes and I couldn't do this without you."

"It would be difficult without the visions, wouldn't it?" She frowned. "Although they'd probably just be passed on to someone else, like Doyle did to me when--"

Angel caught her hand. "That's not what I meant." She looked at him in confusion. "I meant...you're more than just a messenger. You're an invaluable part of the team. We need you, Cordy."

I need you, he added silently.

She was quiet for a moment. "I miss him."

The words were so soft, if he hadn't been a vampire, he wouldn't have heard them.

"Doyle?" he asked, his voice low, too.

Cordelia nodded, almost imperceptibly.

"Me too," Angel agreed, gazing at her silhouette in the darkness.

She reached out and squeezed his hand tightly, and he squeezed back. For a moment, a comfortable, but sad silence reigned.

"So, who's the girl?" she asked finally.

"Her name is Liz Parker."

"What's her deal anyway? Is someone following her or is she just cursed with incredibly bad luck?"

"My instincts say she's being followed by someone."

"So what are we dealing with here? Demons? Vampires? Minions from Hell?"

"Honestly? I don't know. I don't think we'll know anything until we talk to her."

"Well, she's here, right? What are we waiting for?" Cordelia threw back her bedspread and started to get up.

"No, it can wait until morning." He pulled the covers over her again. "You need sleep," he said firmly.

To her credit, she didn't argue with him. She snuggled down under the blankets and Angel kissed her forehead.

"'Night, Angel."

He stood up. "'Night, Cordy." He left the room and walked down the hall to the living room. Wesley saw him and quickly put a finger to his lips, then motioned to the couch.

Liz had fallen asleep, curled up on her side, and had a blanket draped over her.

Angel nodded his head toward the kitchen and Wesley followed him. "Did you find out anything?"

Wesley sighed and scratched his head. "Only that she's from New Mexico, and is apparently here on vacation. Other than that..." his voice trailed off. "Is Cordelia asleep?"

"Hopefully. She needs it."

"It doesn't sound like such a bad idea to me, either. It's been a long day."

"Yeah, it has," Angel agreed.

"Well, do you want the guest room, or--?"

"No, you take it. I'm not ready to sleep yet."

"All right then. Good night."

"Night."

Wesley disappeared down the hall and into the room on the left.

Angel glanced at Liz, asleep on the couch, and then returned to Cordelia's room, walking softly. He could tell from the sound of her breathing that she had fallen asleep. He hesitated for a moment, and then laid down on the floor next to her bed.

Angel closed his eyes, finally being able to take comfort in the fact that Cordelia was still alive. He listened to her breathing for several long moments before his own eyes drifted shut. And even though he had told Wesley he wasn't ready to sleep only a few moments before, he found himself drifting off into a peaceful slumber.


	7. Chapter 7

Maria yanked the cabinet door open and grabbed a glass. She filled it with milk and delivered it curtly to the customer. She hadn't slept well the previous night. It had started with lying awake, staring at the glow-in-the-dark stars on her ceiling, and thinking about Michael Guerin. Then dreaming about him. Then waking up and being unable to sleep again because she couldn't *stop* thinking about him.

Just thinking about him now caused the glass she was carrying to slip from her hand and shatter on the floor.

"Shit! God damn it," she muttered angrily as she stooped down to pick up the pieces.

"Here, let me help."

She looked up to see Max Evans kneeling down next to her. Before she could say anything, he waved his hand over the broken pieces and the glass melded back together. "Thanks."

"Sure." He studied her for a moment.

"If you're going to ask me where Liz is, forget it." She stood up quickly and set the glass in the sink.

"That wasn't...actually, I was wondering how you were."

Maria rolled her eyes. "I'm peachy. Life's great. Why wouldn't it be?" she snapped sarcastically.

Max looked away and suddenly she felt guilty for having been mean to him the past couple weeks. After all, they were in the same boat. Liz had walked out on Max, Michael had walked out on her...

"Max, I'm sorry. I'm just...angry."

"You're hurting," he said softly. Before she realized it, tears had filled her eyes. Max noticed, and said, "Hey, don't you have a break coming up?"

She nodded.

"Let's go for a walk."

Maria blinked back the tears, surprised. "Yeah. That'd be great." She turned to the other waitress on duty. "Agnes, I'm going on break."

"*I'm* on break."

"Not anymore." Maria untied her apron and discarded it on the counter, ignoring the dirty look the older woman sent her way. She followed Max out the front door of the Crashdown, taking a deep breath of fresh air.

They walked down the street for a few minutes in silence.

"He loves you."

"Has a funny way of showing it," Maria said bitterly.

"Michael's never been good at opening up to people. He thinks he's doing what's right for everyone. But for you especially."

"He didn't give me a choice. It's my life. How can he just make that decision for me?"

"I know how you feel," Max said softly.

Maria paused. "Liz...is confused, Max. She thinks she did the right thing. I mean, put yourself in her shoes for a minute. Pretend that you just found out that Liz and Kyle were destined to be together, that they were the only ones who could save the human race. You have two choices: stay with her and take the chance of interfering and causing the extinction of an entire race...or even just the death of one person. Or you walk away, and hope that one day, after all the world-saving is done...maybe. Maybe then you can be together. What do you choose, Max?"

Max stared at her for a moment, but didn't speak.

Maria leaned against the wall of the building they had stopped by.

"I understand. But she's wrong," he finally said. "I need her. I can't even think straight without her. And if I can't even think, how can I save an entire race?"

"I know that. You know that. But Liz...give her time, Max. She'll know it, too."

"Waiting's so hard." Max was nearly on the verge of tears.

Maria felt her own eyes well up again. She touched his arm. "Hey, don't fall apart on me, Evans. We have to stay strong. I mean, I don't know about you, but I am *so* not the weepy type."

Max smiled.

"I should get back. Work." She sighed.

Max walked with her back to the Crashdown. "I should get home."

"Why don't you come in? Have some pancakes with Tabasco sauce. On the house."

He laughed. "That actually does sound good," he admitted.

Maria faked a shudder. "That's just...wrong." She laughed and held the door open for him.

"Thanks." Max sat down at his usual booth as Maria got his breakfast.

No sooner had she put the food on the table than did the door slam open. She whirled around in time to see Michael and Isabel headed straight for her. She was immediately alarmed by the looks on their faces.

Max, too, rose to his feet, the expression on his face grim.

"Where's Liz?" Michael demanded. He didn't even give Max a second glance.

Maria stared at him. "Excuse me?"

"Where. Is. Liz?"

She scowled at him. "Look, I don't know who the hell you think you are, but where Liz is isn't any of your business."

"She's in danger. I had a dream last night--"

"Liz is in trouble?" Max interrupted.

Michael looked right at him for the first time. "I think so."

Max turned to Maria. "Maria, please. You have to tell us where she is."

Before Maria had a chance to say a word, the door swung open again, and Alex ran up to them. "I've been looking everywhere for you guys. Maria, did Liz call you last night?" he asked anxiously.

Maria shook her head. "No."

"She promised she'd call! She swore to me that she'd call one of us and let us know she was all right!" Alex ran a shaky hand through his hair.

"L.A.," Maria whispered.

Max stared at her, and then headed for the door. "I'm going."

"Not alone, you're not!" Isabel replied, following him.

Michael followed them both. "Isabel and I are going with you."

Maria grabbed Alex's hand and ran after them. "We're going, too."

Michael turned around. "No, you're not. It's not safe."

"And you can't stop me. You're not my boyfriend anymore, Michael. You don't get to make anymore decisions for me," she snapped.

"Liz is our friend. We're going," Alex agreed.

"No," he replied flatly, glaring at both of them.

Maria was about a second away from slugging him. Max turned and looked at her. Then he looked at Michael. "They're coming with us."

Without another word, he turned around and walked out of the Crashdown, leaving Michael speechless. Maria smirked and hurried past him with a feeling of triumph.

Take that, she thought.

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Liz sighed and turned over in bed. She opened her eyes slowly. And saw that she wasn't in her bedroom, nor was she in a bed. She had fallen asleep on a couch.

She sat up suddenly, jarred completely awake by the memory of the previous nights events. The man--or rather, the thing--that had been chasing her exploding into a cloud of dust as Angel drove a stake through his heart.

Angel had no doubt saved her life.

Because she also had no doubt that the thing would have killed her.

She relaxed. She didn't know how she knew, but she knew she was safe here. She must have known it last night, too, or she never would have fallen asleep in a strange apartment. There was one other thing she knew, too.

She smelled bacon frying.

Liz hadn't realized how hungry she was until that moment. She pushed back the blanket and swung her legs over the side of the couch. She hesitated at the kitchen entrance.

Wesley looked over at her from the table. "Miss Parker, good morning."

"Good morning. Please, call me Liz."

"Oh, yes. Of course. Sorry." He smiled at her.

"Morning," another voice said.

She turned to see Angel standing at the stove, apparently cooking breakfast. "Morning," she answered.

"Sleep well?"

"Yes. Thank you."

"Do you eat bacon and eggs? I can fix pancakes, too," Angel offered.

"No...bacon and eggs are fine."

"Pancakes sound good to me," a woman said from the doorway.

Liz turned around, her eyes widening. It was the same woman who had saved her life yesterday.

Wesley rose from his seat and moved to the woman's side. Angel was right behind him. "Cordelia, you shouldn't be out of bed."

"I'll bring a tray back to your room," Angel added quickly.

Cordelia rolled her eyes and stepped around them. "Over-protective much?"

Liz finally found her voice. "Shouldn't you be in the hospital?"

Angel and Wesley both gave her knowing looks, which she ignored. "I'm all right," Cordelia told her as she walked over to her. "I'm Cordelia Chase."

Liz shook her hand. "Liz Parker."

"Glad you're here. All in one piece, I mean. And with a beating heart." She moved to the counter.

Liz wondered exactly what she meant, but chose not to ask right then.

"Is there coffee? Nevermind," she said as she found a cup already poured. She glanced over at Angel. "This is *just* coffee right? No special ingredients?"

Liz noticed a slight smile on his face. "Just coffee," he confirmed.

Wesley looked over at Liz. "Please, have a seat," he said kindly.

Liz sat down at the kitchen table. She watched as Angel put one hand on Cordelia's shoulder and guided her over to the table, as well, pulling out a seat for her.

"You may have discharged yourself from the hospital, but you still need to rest," he said firmly as she sat down.

Cordelia looked at Liz and rolled her eyes again as Angel returned to the stove. "I swear, between these two, I should have just stayed at the hospital."

Liz smiled.

Angel set a plate of bacon and eggs in front of her, and one in front of Cordelia. "The food wouldn't be as good."

"Yes, and I seem to recall something about tacky hospital gowns?" Wesley sipped his tea, hiding a smile behind his mug.

Cordelia shot him a look, but didn't reply.

"Cordy, you want some orange juice?" Angel offered.

"Sure."

Liz watched in shock as the refrigerator opened by itself and the carton of Sunny Delight flew out.

Angel caught the startled expression on her face. "Uh--"

Cordelia flashed her a smile as the gallon opened and poured her a glass of juice. "Thanks, Dennis." She leaned across the table towards Liz. "Dennis is my--" She dropped her voice. "--ghost."

Liz stared at her for a moment. A ghost. Okay, she could deal with that. After all, she was in love with an alien. "Is he...friendly?"

"Oh, yeah. Dennis is great," Cordelia told her with a grin.

Liz smiled back, shrugged, and took a bite of the scrambled eggs. "Wow, these are really good."

"Angel's a very good cook," Cordelia informed her.

"Aren't you eating?" Liz asked him.

It was Angel's turn to look startled. "Uh--I don't eat--"

"Breakfast," Cordelia finished. She and Angel exchanged a look. "He doesn't eat breakfast." She stood up and carried her empty plate to the sink.

Wesley looked at Angel and then at Liz. "Liz, Angel tells us you were being chased last night."

Liz took a deep breath. "Yeah. But I think he killed it. I mean, I'm assuming that's what happens when something explodes into dust."

"Uh, yes. Quite right."

"We weren't sure how much you saw," Angel explained.

"I think I pretty much saw the whole thing," she admitted. "So...what was that? That thing that was chasing me?"

Cordelia rejoined them at the table and exchanged glances with both men before turning her gaze to Liz. "It was a vampire."

"A vampire," Liz repeated.

By all given appearances, Cordelia appeared completely serious, as did the two men at her side.

"We know it's hard to believe," Wesley began

"Actually, it's not." And she meant it. That was the scary part. " That explains the stake you used to kill him with."

Angel nodded.

"So now...my question is--how did you...I mean, um..."

While Wesley and Angel stared at her blankly, Cordelia picked up on what she was trying to say. "We--sort of do this for a living."

"Killing vampires?"

She nodded. "Helping people that are in trouble. Being stalked by vampires, demons, that sort of thing."

Angel shot her a look. "Liz, we think you're in danger. Do you know anyone who might want you dead?"

Tess, Liz thought immediately, remembering the look of hatred in the girl's eyes as Max had told Liz she meant everything to him. She banished the thought. Tess might not be her favorite person, but she didn't really believe the girl was evil, either. "Um, no. Not really," she answered quietly.

"Well, you can stay here until we figure out who it is," Cordelia told her cheerfully.

"I don't want to be a burden. I think maybe I should just go home," she said hesitantly.

"Roswell, right?" Wesley asked.

"Yeah."

"I've always wanted to go there." The British man smiled. "Have you seen any little green men?"

Liz nearly choked on her orange juice, and then covered it up with a nervous laugh. "Definitely not. Oh, no!"

"What's wrong?" Angel asked.

"I forgot to call Alex! He's probably freaking out. I'm really sorry to ask this, but can I please use your phone? I'll pay for it."

"Sure, and don't worry about it. There's one in the living room," Cordelia offered.

"Thank you." Liz hurried out of the room. She just hoped Alex hadn't told Maria she hadn't called. She didn't want to think about the possible consequences.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel exchanged looks with Wesley and Cordelia as Liz left the room. "She's hiding something."

"Definitely," Cordelia agreed, carrying the dirty dishes to the sink.

Wesley quickly stood up. "Cordelia, let me get those."

She shrugged and let him take over running the dish water and rinsing dishes. "Hey, if you want to do my dishes, who am I to argue?" She rejoined Angel at the table. "What do you think she's hiding?"

"I don't know."

"Well, she certainly didn't have trouble accepting the whole vampires-ghosts-and demons exist bit," she commented.

"No, she didn't," Wesley agreed.

"But I don't get any wiggy vibes from her, either."

"Wiggy vibes?" Angel repeated, amusement in his eyes.

"Yeah. You know. Creepy-crawly vibes. Like the kind I get whenever we're near Lawyer Boy." She frowned. "Although that doesn't necessarily mean she's good. There was the whole demon-auctioning-my-eyes and demon-pregnancy thing..."

Just then Liz came back in the room, worry on her face.

"Everything okay?" Angel asked.

"I'm not sure. Alex wasn't there, and neither was Maria."

"Do you think something happened to them?" Cordelia asked. Angel shot her look. "What? I'm trying to help."

"I don't know." Liz bit her lip.

At that moment there was a knock on the door.

Cordelia started to get up, but Angel beat her to it. "I'll get it."

Angel moved to the front door. As soon as he unlocked it, it re-locked. "Dennis," he said aloud in a stern voice. This time when he unlocked it, it stayed unlocked. He opened the door to find Kate Lockley standing there.

She looked at him, shocked momentarily and unable to speak.

"Kate," he greeted her, but didn't invite her in.

"Angel," she replied, clearly surprised to see him.

"What are you doing here?" he asked quietly.

"I'm here to see Cordelia. Is she here?"

"Maybe."

"I'm not in the mood for games."

"Neither am I. Cordelia was seriously hurt yesterday and I don't want anyone upsetting her."

"That's why I'm here. We think we found the car used in the hit and run. I want to see if she recognizes it."

Angel folded his arms across his chest. "Cordy," he called.

"Yeah?" She was at his side a moment later. She saw Kate standing there and immediately frowned.

"I'm here on duty," Kate told her.

Cordelia stared at her for a brief moment. Then she nodded. "Come in."

Angel stepped aside and let the detective inside.

Kate cleared her throat and sat down on the sofa as she pulled her briefcase onto her lap, removed a photo and handed it to Cordelia.

Cordy gazed down at the car photo, then looked up at Kate. "Is this the car?"

"I was hoping the you could tell me," Kate admitted with a sigh. "I take it to mean you don't recognize it."

Cordelia stared down at the photo again. It was a blue sedan, Angel noted. But he could read the uncertainty on Cordy's face as plain as day. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Liz," he called.

A few seconds later, Liz and Wesley were standing behind him and Cordelia. He again caught Kate's stunned gaze as she saw Liz.

Liz caught sight of the picture in Cordelia's hands and her eyes widened. "That's the car!" She took the photo and looked closer. She looked at Kate. "This is the car that hit Cordelia yesterday."

"You're sure?" Kate stood up.

"I'm positive."

"We found this car abandoned on Riverside Road early this morning."

"What happens now?" Wesley asked.

"We try to find the person responsible. I'll be in touch."

Angel walked her to the door. "Whose car is this?" he asked, his voice low

Kate looked up to him. "All I can tell you is that it's stolen."

"Kate --"

"Angel, don't push it," she warned. Without another word, she turned around and walked away.

Angel closed the door. "Cordelia, think you can hack back into the L.A.P.D.'s files?"

She sighed. "I know what you're thinking. And I probably could. But what good will it do? Do you have any idea how many cars are reported stolen in this city everyday?"

She had a point.

"I should have gotten a better look at the license plates on the photo," she said, putting her head in her hands.

Wesley put a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"WAHL 47," Liz said quietly.

Angel, Wesley and Cordelia all turned their heads to stare at her. "What did you say?" Wesley asked.

"It's the license plate number on the car. I sort of...memorized it," she admitted.

"Angel, isn't that--?" Wesley asked, turning to look at him with wide eyes.

Angel nodded, his entire body flooding with anger. "Lindsey."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel waited outside in the shadows of the huge building. He couldn't stop the waves of rage that rolled through him. His fists clenched involuntarily at his sides. Lindsey. Lindsey was responsible for Cordelia's accident.

Somehow Lindsey was involved with whomever was after Liz.

Angel didn't need proof--he could feel it in his bones.

This case had Wolfram and Hart all over it.

One way or another, Angel would stop their evil dealings.

Starting with Lindsey McDonald.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lindsey McDonald couldn't wait to go home. He was in a good mood--the first phase of his plan had been completed as expected. Angel would pay for his disfigurement.

And he would pay big time.

He smiled as he left the offices of Wolfram and Hart, stepping outside. The sun was just starting to set, and he was looking forward to going home and relaxing for the night before all the action started. The smile quickly left his face as he was grabbed around the throat, dragged into the alley, and slammed up against the wall.

Lindsey stared at Angel with widened eyes as the vampire glared at him.

"Did you know that Cordelia was nearly killed yesterday with your car?"

"My car was stolen," he managed to choke out.

"Very convenient." Angel tightened his grip. "I know you're involved in trying to kill Liz Parker. I don't care why. But it stops here. Now."

Lindsey struggled for air.

"I'm going to let you off with a warning, so you'd better pay attention. If anything happens to Liz, or anyone else I care about, I will come after you. I may not be Angelus, but I still remember every method of torture invented since the early 18th century. And Lindsey, in your case, I would *definitely* enjoy it," he said, his voice a low whisper in the lawyer's ear.

Angel let him go suddenly and Lindsey dropped to the ground, gasping for breath.

No way was Angel going to get away with attacking him right outside his place of work. As soon as the vampire turned his back and started to walk away, Lindsey reached into the pocket of his jacket and removed a small gun.

"Angel!" he called hoarsely as he stumbled to his feet and moved to the mouth of the alley.

The vampire turned around.

Lindsey fired the gun, and three wooden stakes slammed into his chest. "Next time it'll be your heart," he warned, smiling in satisfaction as Angel crumpled to the ground in pain.


	8. Chapter 8

Liz glanced around the living room of Cordelia's apartment as she waited for Cordelia to return from the kitchen. It was late afternoon and Angel had been gone for several hours. Wesley was doing some form of research in the kitchen at the table. She and Cordelia had offered to help, but he'd assured them that he could handle it.

Liz was surprised by how relaxed she felt here. She liked the trio of demon hunters/investigators.  
Wesley was sweet, a true gentleman at heart. He had a soft voice and a nice accent, and kind, warm eyes that expressed quiet intelligence.

Angel was an anomaly. His eyes were deep and expressive and reflected emotions the rest of his face hid. In that matter her reminded her of Max. And like Max, Angel was obviously the leader of the trio, though she had a feeling that if the need arose, both Wesley and Cordelia had the capability of taking control of a situation.

Then there was Cordelia. She was beautiful, and only a couple years older than Liz. Her eyes, too, revealed a depth of emotions. She seemed nice and intelligent, with a bit of a sarcastic nature.

"Hot chocolate," Cordelia said with a smile as she handed Liz a cup.

"Thanks." Liz cradled the cup in her hands and watched Cordelia do the same as she curled up on the sofa.

"So. What's life like in Roswell?"

Liz managed a smile. "Oh, you know. Just a small town. Everyone knows everyone else. Not much to do."

"That's what I used to think about Sunnydale."

"Sunnydale?"

"That's where I was born and raised until I moved here. It's a small town about two hours north of here," Cordelia explained. "Turns out we had our very own Hellmouth."

Liz stared at her. "Your own what?"

Cordelia hesitated. "It's... sort of a long story. Let's just say that my high school experience was a unique and memorable one. I moved to L. A. and met up with Angel again."

"You knew Angel from before?"

Cordelia nodded. "From Sunnydale. Like I said, it's a really long, complicated story."

"I know all about those," Liz said under her breath. "So this Wolfram and Hart... what's the deal with that?"

The other girl made a face. "Well, you know how Angel, Wes and I go around fighting demons and evil people?" Liz nodded. "They defend them. Actually in a lot of cases they've been behind the evil doings."

"But why? Why would they do that?"

"Power and money, I guess. I don't really know."

Liz ran her finger around the rim of her mug. "And this Lindsey guy is who?"

"A junior partner with the company. He sort of has it out for Angel."

"Why?"

"Angel cut off his hand in order to stop him from burning a sacred scroll that would save my life."

Liz raised an eyebrow, but didn't respond.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So you want to be an actress?" Liz asked a little while later.

Cordelia set down her empty mug and stretched out on the sofa. "I thought I did. But now...I think I'm supposed to be here, you know? Like my life has some greater purpose."

"Yeah," Liz said softly, staring at the floor.

Cordelia frowned. Just as she was about to ask the girl if she was okay, her apartment door flew open.

"Thanks, Dennis," Angel said weakly as he stumbled inside, blood pouring from wounds hidden by his coat.

Cordelia was on her feet and across the room at his side an instant later.

"Oh, my God," Liz whispered in horror.

"Put your arms around my shoulders," Cordelia commanded and Angel didn't argue. The second he had draped his arm over her, he started sinking to the ground. She struggled to support him. "Wesley! Help!"

Wesley appeared, his face grim as he saw Angel's injured state, and he quickly helped her move him to the kitchen.

"Should I call 911?" Liz asked as she hovered in the kitchen entry.

"No, I'll be okay," Angel said, grimacing in pain.

"My Lord, what happened?" Wesley asked, as he helped Cordelia remove Angel's coat.

"Lindsey didn't like what I had to say," he joked grimly.

Cordelia didn't smile. "Wesley, towels. Dennis, get my first aid kit."

Wesley scurried off, and a few seconds later, returned with a pile of towels. Her first aid kit floated into the kitchen and landed next to Angel on the table.

She opened it and pulled out a pair of scissors. "It'll hurt less if I cut your shirt off," she explained, not looking at him for permission, though he gave it with a nod.

"Is there anything I can do?" Liz asked, her face slightly pale.

Cordelia barely registered her words, concentrating as she cut of Angel's shirt and discarded it onto the floor without a second thought.

Three stakes had been driven into him--one in his stomach, one in his shoulder, and one just barely an inch above his heart. Blood streamed from the three wounds, pooling on her table.

She met his eyes. "This is going to hurt," she warned.

"I know."

Cordelia reached for the stake above his heart and hesitated.

"Just do it," he said quietly, bracing himself for the pain.

She sucked in a breath and pulled the stake out quickly, wincing as she heard him curse lowly. "Sorry," she whispered as she removed the other two.

Cordelia reached for the towels and grabbed one off the pile. "Wesley, get me a bowl of water. Angel, lie down."

Angel laid back on Cordelia's kitchen table, looking surprised when Liz appeared at his side. She slid a couple of towels under his head like a pillow and watched as Cordelia soaked a towel in the bowl of water and began to clean his wounds.

When she finished, she said, "Okay, sit back up now. Careful." She slid one of her slender arms under his neck and helped him up. "Wesley, bandage."

Wesley quickly pulled out the gauze and ace bandages from the first aid kit and handed them over.  
Cordelia carefully pressed the gauze over his wounds and reached for the wraps. She gently wound it around his arm and stomach as he watched her face. She was in deep concentration, tense, but calm as she worked. A moment she stepped away. "Done."

"Thanks," he said quietly.

"Yep." She quickly began gathering up the remnants of her first aid kit with shaking hands.

"Cordelia, let me get that," Wesley said quickly, moving to her side. "Go get cleaned up."

She realized how badly she was shaking, and that her heart was pounding double-time, and she moved past Liz and out of the kitchen, barely making it down the hall before the tears welled up in her eyes.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wesley and Angel exchanged a look. "We're going to have to tell Liz," Angel said quietly, and Wesley nodded.

"I'll do it," he volunteered. "Are you all right?"

"I will be." Angel slid off the table.

"Perhaps you should go check on Cordelia."

"Way ahead of you, Wes."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia let the water run in the sink, watching as steam rose and fogged up the bathroom mirror. She put her hands under the faucet, wincing as the scalding water burnt her skin, but refusing to pull back. Instead she focused on scraping away the blood under her fingernails and staining her hands.

She fought back tears and commanded herself to calm down and pull herself together.

It wasn't like she hadn't seen injured people before. Back in Sunnydale, someone was always getting hurt: Xander, Willow, Giles, her. After awhile she'd gotten used to it. Gotten used to the sight and smell of blood, gotten used to the fear of death. Once you'd been close to death so many times, the fear tended to numb your senses.

But that didn't mean that you weren't affected by it.

On the contrary.

Even when you've seen numerous people get killed right in front of you, it still affects you, even though you might not show it. It hits you somewhere deep within a dark, hidden place in your soul, a place that never really gets used to seeing people get savagely murdered, a place that you keep hidden away from the world in order to hide your fear. And Cordelia was good at hiding her emotions most of the time.

But that didn't mean she didn't feel. It just meant that she was better at hiding than most people.

How could she not? So many of her classmates had been killed, people she had known since birth and grown up with. Even the ones she hadn't been friends with--she had felt the impact of their deaths. She still did.

And then, one of the only true friends she'd ever had, had sacrificed himself to save other lives...God, she missed Doyle. More than she ever thought possible. It had been almost a year since his death, but when she thought about him, it felt like it had just happened yesterday.

Now. Now Angel and Wesley were her world. She had little contact with the gang from Sunnydale. She'd always been an outsider there, no matter who she was with, or how hard she tried. She had just never belonged. She, Cordelia Chase, whom had been born to a life of privilege and riches, was an outsider in her own hometown.

They were all she had. Angel, Wesley and Dennis...her life revolved around them. She needed them. If anything happened to them...

That stake had been so close to his heart. A fraction lower and Angel would be a pile of dust.

Now she felt nauseous.

Great.

She pulled her bloodstained shirt off over her head and tossed it in the garbage can.

She didn't want to see it again. Ever.

Cordelia washed the blood off her neck and arms, and dried off. She quickly grabbed her terrycloth robe off the back of the bathroom door and slipped into it. She tied the sash, and sunk down on the edge of the tub, burying her face in her hands, and allowing herself to cry this one time while she was alone.

A sudden knock on the door made her jump and she rolled her eyes. "I'm becoming such a mouse," she muttered. She quickly splashed water on her face, dabbing at her eyes to make sure there was no redness.

Then she opened the door. "You should be in bed," she informed Angel, folding her arms across her chest.

"Can I come in?"

"Suit yourself." She held the door open for him and he stepped inside and closed it.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm peachy. And you?" she said sarcastically.

"Cordelia..."

"Don't 'Cordelia' me, buster. You nearly got yourself killed tonight."

"It's not like I did it on purpose," he pointed out.

"What did you think was going to happen tonight, Angel? You were just going to march over to Wolfram and Hart, attack Lindsey, and get by with it?" she demanded, suddenly feeling angry with him.

Angel stared at her.

"Well, let me tell you something, buddy. If you get yourself killed on one of these soul-saving missions and you leave me and Wes here alone to deal with these damned visions and demon fighting, I'll get Willow's help and we'll bring you back from the dead so I can stake you myself! And don't think she wouldn't do it. She's a witch, you know." Cordelia glared at him, hands on her hips.

He wasn't able to suppress the chuckle that escaped him, and she couldn't help but smile back faintly. Then his face grew serious again. "I'm not going anywhere," he promised, meeting her eyes.

She nodded in satisfaction, though she knew that he'd get hurt again, and the worry would start all over.

"We should probably go out there. Wesley's telling Liz about me."

Cordelia picked up on the tension in his voice, and gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I have a feeling that it's not going to bother her."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"He's not human, is he?"

Wesley looked up at Liz, startled by her question, and by the certainty in her voice. "No, he's not."  
She nodded and wiped off the kitchen table for the third time.

"He's a vampire."

This time, Liz appeared startled. "But--"

"He was cursed by gypsies more than a century ago. He killed one of the daughters of their clan, and they cursed him with a soul."

"And now he helps people," Liz said slowly, realization appearing on her face.

"Yes."

She tossed the blood-soaked dishrag into the garbage can, then paused and pulled it back out. "Should we burn this?"

Wesley looked at her quizzically.

"So that no one finds out who he really is," she explained.

"Oh. No, it's all right. His blood is still human." I think, he added silently.

"But he's not technically alive, right? I mean, they can tell if blood came from someone who's alive or dead. These cells would be dead."

Wesley frowned. "I never thought of that," he admitted. Then he wondered what made *her* think of it. "I think it'll be okay to just throw it away."

Liz bit her lip and dropped it into the trash again.

At that moment, Angel and Cordelia joined them. Cordelia smiled at Liz while Angel lingered in the doorway hesitantly.

Liz smiled back at Cordelia, and then at Angel. "It's okay."

"I knew she could handle it." Cordelia beamed.

"I can handle a lot more than I ever thought possible," Liz said, shrugging.

"Well, this is great. Now I can tell you all about the adventures of Sunnydale High."

Liz grinned and followed Cordelia out of the kitchen.

Wesley glanced at Angel. "Angel, I think Liz knows a lot more than she's saying."

"She did take that news rather well, didn't she?" he replied wryly.

Wesley nodded in agreement. "Well, perhaps Cordelia can figure it out."

"I think she's our best bet."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, here's the plan," Max said as he faced the others in the train station parking lot. "Alex and Isabel, you two check out the hospitals. I'll check out the police department. Michael, Maria, you two check every hotel you can find."

"You're not going alone," Michael countered.

Max gave him a look. "I can protect myself, Michael, and we'll get more ground covered if we split up. Now we meet back here at 10:00. Isabel and Maria both have cell phones, so if any of us finds Liz, call them."

"We're going to find her, Max," Isabel said quietly.

He nodded, and watched as their group split up and headed off in different directions.

"I'm coming, Liz," he whispered.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, that's it. Everything's in place." Lindsey turned to face his companion. "Don't forget to deliver what you promised."

"I never break my promises."

"Good. Because Angel must pay."

"And he will."

Lindsey smiled in satisfaction, and clenched his good hand. "I'll break him without even having to touch him. He thinks he knows what it's like to regret his actions now...he'll know more pain and grief than he ever has by the time I'm through with him."

"And he'll be too distracted to help the Parker girl," Nasedo said.

Lindsey and Nasedo exchanged a smile.


	9. Chapter 9

"Excuse me. We're looking for someone we think may have been brought here," Isabel said, smiling sweetly at the secretary at the nurse's station.

"Name?" the woman responded boredly.

"Parker. Liz Parker," Alex said.

She typed the name into the computer, then shook her head. "No one's been admitted under that name."

"You're sure?"

She looked at them, her eyes narrow. "Positive."

"Thanks for your time," Isabel told her as Alex walked away. She hurried and caught up with him.

"This is the fifth hospital we've been to. This could take forever."

"What if she's using a different name?"

Alex frowned and then sighed. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Alex..."

"Yeah?"

She hesitated. "Maybe we should be checking the morgues."

All the color drained from his face and for a moment she was sure he was going to pass out. Then he nodded. "Yeah..."

She reached out and took his hand as she lead the way, following the hospital signs. They both hesitated at the morgue entrance. "I'll go in. You stay here," she told him.

"No. I can do this."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

Isabel nodded, looked around the empty hallway, then waved her hand over the door lock. She stepped inside the dark room, with Alex following closely.

She concentrated for a moment and then produced a ball of light in her hands. She turned to Alex. "Hold this."

His eyes widened. "Uh--"

"It's not fire. It won't burn you," Isabel said patiently, then she transferred the ball to Alex's hands, smiling as she saw the look of amazement on his face.

Her smile fled immediately when she turned to face the morgue drawers. A shiver ran down her spine as she started pulling them out one by one. Most were empty, and Alex wasn't watching as she opened the last one.

It was an old woman.

Isabel closed her eyes and shut the drawer. "She's not here."

Alex released the breath he'd been holding and she moved to stand beside him again. His eyes were filled with tears.

A wave of sympathy washed over her. She remembered not too long ago when she and Michael and Tess had rescued Max from Eagle Rock Naval Base. Before they'd found him, they'd seen some agents wheel a body by on a gurney. Isabel had been terrified that it was Max under the sheet.

"Alex, I'm so sorry," she whispered, wrapping her arms around him.

He closed his eyes and let her embrace comfort her. "Let's find her."

Isabel nodded. "We will."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"This is pointless." Maria sighed in exasperation as she turned away from the hotel desk.

"You shouldn't have come," Michael said with a shrug.

She glared at him. "You would have loved that, too, wouldn't you? Well, you know what, I don't care. I'm here. Deal with it." She stalked away from him.

He caught up with her a few minutes later and she was halfway down the sidewalk. She ignored him and went inside to the next hotel. "Excuse me. I'm looking for Liz Parker's room. Could you call and tell her Maria's waiting in the lobby?"

The hotel clerk typed something into the computer. "I'm sorry. No one's checked in under that name."

She sighed. "Thanks." She headed for the door, and was halfway there when she suddenly stopped. "Oh, shit."

"What?"

"She's probably not even registered under her own name."

Michael frowned. "Why wouldn't she use her real name?"

"Uh, hello? She practically ran away from Roswell, Michael. She came here to escape. To hide. She didn't want to be found. Poor Lizzie," she whispered.

"Excuse me, we're here because she's gotten herself into trouble. If she hadn't acted like such a coward--"

"Hello? Pot? This is kettle," Maria retorted.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You're a smart guy, Michael. You figure it out." Maria walked away, leaving a dumbfounded Michael to stare after her.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Max Evans looked around the crowded police department. Cops and civilians were scattered everywhere. Phones were ringing, a baby was crying, and he heard shouting across the room.

In the midst of it all, he saw a blonde woman hunched over a desk in deep concentration.

Max maneuvered his way through the crowd and found himself standing in front of her desk. "Excuse me."

The woman looked up, studied him for a moment, then frowned. "Can I help you?"

"I hope so. I'm looking for a girl my age. Long dark hair, beautiful brown eyes, about 5 ft. 4, and 110 pounds. Her name is Liz Parker."

A hint of recognition lit up the woman's eyes. "And you are?"

"Max Evans. She's my girl--a friend of mine," he quickly amended, an ache tugging at his heart.

"I'm Detective Lockley. Why don't you have a seat, Mr. Evans. I'll be right back."

The detective stood up and moved away from her desk.

Max sat down and his eyes flitted around the room. His pulse quickened. Out of all the noise in the station, the only thing he could hear now was the sound of his own heart reverberating in his chest.

He knew--with absolute certainty--that Liz had been here. Had sat in the same chair he was now sitting in. He felt her.

She was in danger.

Michael had been right.

He had to get out of there and find her.

Max rose to his feet, his blood hammering through his veins. He moved through the crowd quickly.

"Stop him!" he heard a woman shout.

His path was almost immediately blocked by a tall male officer.

"Excuse me," he muttered.

"Max Evans!"

He turned to face Detective Lockley. "Yeah?"

"You're under arrest for grand theft auto and attempted murder," she informed him.

Max stared at her in disbelief. This had to be some sort of a joke. "What?"

"You have the right to remain silent..."

Max didn't protest as she handcuffed his hands behind his back and finished reading him his rights. He was too stunned to speak.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Isabel and Alex gave up using Liz's name.

Alex had to agree that it was unlikely Liz had even been using her real name. Description was much more likely to trigger a response.

And at the tenth hospital they visited, it worked.

"Yeah, there was a girl brought in yesterday afternoon that fit that description. Pretty girl. Banged up pretty bad, though. A hit-and-run case."

"Oh, my God," Alex muttered as he grew pale.

Isabel's face drained of color as well. "Is she okay?"

"She released herself from the hospital yesterday evening."

"Maybe she went home."

Alex shook his head. "She would have called."

"What do we do now?" she asked with a sigh.

"Hit the streets, I guess. Start looking for her."

"She could be anywhere."

"I know. But what else can we do?" he asked in frustration.

"Good point. Okay, if you were Liz and were in L.A., where would you go?" Isabel asked. They looked at each other.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kate Lockley's mood went from bad to worse when she was approached by Lindsey McDonald. The man may be nice to look at, but she knew he was untrustworthy, and about as evil as human beings came. She knew about what kind of dirty dealings the man handled, and about the demons he and his law firm associates defended.

Granted, she may not have warm, fuzzy feelings for Angel and his friends, but she'd rather deal with them anyday over the scum from Wolfram and Hart.

"Detective Lockley, you're looking lovely today," Lindsey greeted her, smiling.

She looked up at him but didn't respond.

"I heard you found my car and caught the punk who stole it."

"The sketch you had the artist do left little room for doubt. And his fingerprints match the ones found in your car."

"I want to see him."

"It's unnecessary."

"I want to see the little bastard that had the nerve to steal my car."

Kate narrowed her eyes. "No."

"Detective, you don't know what you're dealing with here."

She rose to her feet and leaned toward him, her voice dangerously low. "No, Mr. McDonald, I know *exactly* what I'm dealing with. I know who you are, and I know what you do. And I don't for a second believe a thing you or any one of your associates has to say. Now, I have work to do." Kate turned around and walked away from him.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liz walked next to Angel, her senses on full alert. She wasn't worried because he was a vampire.

A vampire.

Maria would have a hay-day with that one.

She smiled. She could just imagine her friend's reaction. Maria had nearly freaked out when she first learned that Max, Isabel and Michael were aliens.

Of course, then she'd fallen in love with one.

There had always been rumors about the crash, and about the aliens that supposedly performed horrible experiments on humans, implanted them with devices, mutilated cows. Growing up in Roswell, those rumors were even worse. She supposed it was that sort of thing that caused Maria's initial fear.

Liz hadn't been afraid. Curious, but not afraid. It was similar to the curiosity she now felt about Angel.

"So, are there any other good vampires?" she asked, stuffing her hands in her coat pockets.

"Not that we know of. Most of them are just killers."

"So how do you..." She hesitated.

"Kill 'em?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

She nodded.

"Stakes. Sunlight. Fire. Beheading. Crosses, garlic and holy water will hold them off, but it won't kill them."

"Beheading?" Liz shuddered. "Do they all turn to dust?"

"Most of them." A dark expression crossed his face for a second and then disappeared.

She wondered what that had been about. "So...is there anything else that I should know about?"

"Vampires can't enter a house or apartment without being invited. We have no reflection, but we've got excellent hearing."

Liz absorbed the information, though she personally hoped she never had to make use of any of it.

"So what about you?"

She started. "What do you mean?"

Angel stopped on the sidewalk and turned to face her. "Liz, I'm going to be honest with you. I can't help you unless you tell me what you know."

She sighed and stared at the ground. "I can't. It's not that I don't trust you. It's just...incredibly, incredibly complicated. And it involves other people besides me." Liz raised her eyes to meet his. "And to be honest...I'm not sure I can be helped," she told him quietly.

They resumed walking in silence for awhile.

"Did you run away?"

Liz hesitated. "Sort of, but not exactly. I had my parents' permission to come to L.A."

"But you're here because you're running from something?"

"Someone," she whispered.

Angel looked at her curiously.

"I sort of...had to end a really intense relationship and I needed to get away for awhile."

"I think that's becoming a trend," he commented.

She didn't ask what he meant. They stopped in front of a Chinese take-out place. Angel held the door open for her and they walked inside. "Cordelia wanted Chinese food," he told her.

Liz smiled and wondered if the vampire with a soul had more than friendly feelings for her new friend Cordelia.

"We don't know for sure that it was her."

"We don't know for sure that it wasn't."

Liz frowned, hearing voices coming from a few people in line behind them. It sounded an awful lot like...

No, it couldn't be.

"She could be out there--anywhere--alone and hurt," the male voice was saying.

But it certainly sounded like...

Liz turned around and looked at the line behind her. Her eyes widened. "Alex!"

He looked up, startled to hear his name. They both got out of line and walked towards each other. "Liz!"

She hugged him tightly. "What are you doing here?" she asked with a laugh.

"Looking for you." He lowered his voice. "Michael had a flash. He said you were in danger."

The smile immediately left her face. "And now so are you."

Alex shook his head. "I came with protection," he informed her, draping his arm around Isabel's shoulders.

"Hi," Isabel said, smiling a bit.

Liz smiled back tentatively. She wasn't sure where she stood with Isabel since she hadn't spoken to her since the day she walked away from Max.

"Glad you're okay." Isabel looked past Liz to someone standing behind her.

She nodded. It was then that Liz remembered she wasn't alone. She turned to see that Angel had gotten out of line, and was waiting patiently to be introduced. "Alex, Isabel, this is Angel. Angel, this is Alex Whitman and Isabel Evans."

"Nice to meet you," Angel said, shaking both their hands.

Isabel stared at Angel for a moment and then smiled. "Nice to meet you, too."

"Alex and Isabel came looking for me," she explained to him.

He nodded. "Why don't we get take-out and go back to Cordy's?" Angel suggested.

"Sounds good," Liz agreed.

"Who's Cordy?" Alex whispered as Angel returned to the line.

"For that matter, who's Angel?" Isabel added, raising an eyebrow.

Liz smiled.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia swallowed two aspirin and washed her glass. Her ribs were aching terribly, and she wondered if maybe she should have stayed in the hospital for a day or two, if for no other reason than to get decent pain killers.

She heard the door open and she pasted a smile on her face as she walked into the living room. Angel walked into the living room, followed by Liz, another girl her age, and a boy.

Cordelia's eyes widened. "Who are you and where did you find those shoes?" she asked, zeroing in on the girl.

Liz grinned. "Isabel, this is Cordelia Chase. Cordelia, these are my friends Isabel Evans and Alex Whitman."

"Hi," Isabel said, smiling. "And I got these shoes in a little vanity store in Albequerque, New Mexico."

"Hey, Angel, I don't suppose you, me and Wes could take a little vacation to New Mex--" She stopped when she saw the look he was giving her and she sighed. "Right. Nevermind."

Alex looked at Isabel. "You should call Maria and tell her we found Liz."

Liz stared at him. "Maria's here?"

"Yeah, and so are Michael and..." His voice trailed off at the look on her face.

"Max," she finished softly.

Alex nodded.

Cordelia took note of the sadness in Liz's eyes and decided it was time to change the subject. "So, where's dinner?"

Angel handed her a bag. "Where's Wesley?"

"I'm here." Wesley walked into the open apartment. "Went home to change and grab a book on demons."

Cordelia gave him a look, and he shrugged. She turned to see Alex and Isabel's reactions, but to her curiosity, they were unreadable.

Hmm.

Before she could say anything, her telephone rang. She quickly picked it up. "Hello?"

"Cordelia? It's Kate Lockley."

"Okay." She waited.

"We've arrested the hit and run driver. The fingerprints match, but I'd still like for Liz to come down and see if she recognizes him." There was hesitation in the detective's voice. "Is she there?"

"Yeah, she's here. Hold on a sec." Cordelia covered the mouth piece on the phone. "They've arrested the hit-and-run driver. Liz, Kate wants to know if you'll come down to the station and make an I.D."

"Yeah, of course," Liz agreed, her eyes wide.

Cordelia placed the phone to her ear again. "We'll be there soon."

"Hit and run? You were injured?" Alex asked, staring at Liz.

"No, Cordelia was. She threw me out of the way."

Cordelia hung up the phone. "Okay, let's go." She headed for the door.

Angel stepped in her path. "I think you should stay here with Wesley."

She stared at him in disbelief. "Excuse me? I was the one who got hurt here."

"Which is exactly why you should stay here. Look," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Whoever was driving that car wasn't after you, but if you go down there, he'll be more likely to come after you if he gets out."

Cordelia frowned. "If Wolfram and Hart are involved, he's going to know who I am, anyway, right?"

"Cordelia, please."

She sighed, and wondered why it was that she gave in to him so easily. "Fine. I'll stay. But I'm *not* happy about it."

"Thank you. Wesley, stay here with Cordy. I'll drive Liz, Alex and Isabel to the police station. I'll call when there's news, okay?"

A sudden inexplicable fear washed over her. "Angel, wait."

He turned to face her.

Cordelia bit her lip, unsure of why she'd called him back, unsure of why she had such a feeling of certainty that she may never see him again.

Concern clouded his dark eyes as he gazed back at her. "What is it? Are you okay?"

She nodded, though she really wasn't. "Just...be careful." She was glad to hear her voice sounded more steady than she felt.

"We will. We'll be back soon," he promised. He glanced past her to Wesley, who nodded, some unspoken message passing between them.

Cordelia felt the wave of dread pass over her again, but she bit her lip and stood up straight as she watched him and Liz and Liz's friends walk out the door.

She suddenly wondered if it would be the last time she ever saw Angel leaving her apartment.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maria sat on the flower box seat outside a row of shops on Main Street, waiting for Michael to return. He had gone somewhere nearby to get something to eat. For once, she was glad for a minute to herself. The sun had set about a half-hour ago and the moon was starting to rise.

Maria massaged te back of her neck, trying to ease away some of the day's tension. She wished she'd brought some of her cedar oil with her, but they had left Roswell in such a hurry that she hadn't had time to stop by her house and grab any. She was just glad her mother was out of town at a small-business owner's expo and she hadn't had to explain why she had to go to L.A.

"Here." Michael thrust a hamburger wrapped in paper at her.

She waved it away. "I'm not hungry. You eat it."

"I already had one."

"So?" she retorted.

"So, I didn't even enjoy the first one. They didn't have any Tabasco Sauce."

Maria rolled her eyes and reluctantly accepted the burger from him. She took a couple bites of it, grimacing at the blandness and then wrapping the packaging around it again.

"You should eat."

"I told you I wasn't hungry."

"You need food or you'll end up passing out."

"What are you? My nutritionist? Just leave it alone, okay? God, what do you care anyway?" Maria stood up. "Let's just look for Liz some more. We only have an hour and a half before we meet up with the others."

Michael sighed and followed her down the sidewalk. "Maybe they already found her."

"And maybe they haven't." She stopped walking and turned to face him. "Look, Michael. I know that you don't really want to be here, especially with me. And I know that Liz is not your favorite person in the world. But she is my best friend, and if anything happens to her--" Her voice broke.

Maria turned away, trying to get control over her emotions. The last thing she wanted to do was have a nervous breakdown in the middle of Main Street, L.A., in front of her ex-boyfriend.

Michael moved so they were standing face-to-face again. Without so much as a sarcastic remark, he put his arms around her and pulled her close. "Maria, we're going to find her. And she's going to be okay, I promise," he said quietly as she buried her face in his shoulder, allowing herself to take comfort in his embrace.

God, how she'd missed this...just being in his arms, feeling the warmth of his body next to hers. She couldn't hardly remember the last time they'd been like this.

He didn't let her go and she didn't pull away. She needed to be right there at that moment. She just prayed that they would find Liz safe, and that maybe Michael wouldn't push her away once they did.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia was afraid.

But she wasn't showing it. Not that there was anyone around to show it to. Wesley had gone to the guest room to take a nap.

That left her alone to try and block her thoughts.

She had ruled out television. Maybe it was because she'd been spending a little too much time with Angel and Wesley, but she just didn't find t.v. to be quite as distracting as it used to be.

So she found herself in the kitchen, cooking.

Yes. She, Cordelia Chase, former Sunnydale May-Queen, was so nervous she'd been forced into the kitchen.

She concentrated on slicing a tomato into thin slices, then chopping those slices into small pieces and dumping them into a bowl. When she'd cut up all three tomatos she had in her refrigerator, she moved onto the two green peppers she had removed from the vegetable drawer. Then she shredded lettuce. She combined the three veggies, then stuck the bowl in the fridge for a dinner salad.

"Okay, now what, Dennis?" she asked as she started pacing the floor again.

A box of brownie mix floated out of the cabinet. She caught it. "I don't remember buying this. Maybe Wesley bought it." She frowned, and wondered if he had expected *her* to make brownies for him. "Do I look like Betty Crocker?" Then she sighed. "Okay, brownies it is then." She scanned the instructions. "All right, help me out here, Dennis. Two eggs, a cup of milk..."

There was a knock on the door.

Cordelia frowned and set down the brownie mix box on her kitchen counter. The eggs that were floating towards her abruptly dropped and splattered on the floor.

"Dennis!" she cried.

The knock came again.

"Great," she muttered as she walked out into her living room and over to the front door. "Who is it?"

"Cordelia, it's me," she heard Angel say.

She unlocked the door and started to open it, when it promptly slammed shut again and locked. Cordelia paused. The last time that Dennis had done that, he'd been trying to protect her and Wesley from Sunnydale's rogue slayer, Faith, who had broken in with the intent on hurting them to get to Angel.

Cordelia looked out the peep hole. Sure enough, Angel was standing there impatiently. She opened the door and it slammed shut again. "Phantom Dennis, it's only Angel," she said in exasperation. She tried again, and this time the door opened. "Sorry. Dennis is being temperamental."

"Ah." Angel stepped inside and closed the door.

"So, how'd it go? Where's Liz? And her friends?" she asked as she turned and headed back to the kitchen.

He followed her. "I took her to meet her other friends. They're on their way back to Roswell."

"You let her leave? Without knowing what's after her? Or why?" Cordelia glanced at him and he shrugged.

"She wanted to go. I couldn't stop her." He leaned against the doorway.

She felt a tug of disappointment at the back of her mind. She'd finally made a female friend and now she'd probably never see her again. She hadn't even gotten to say goodbye. She bit her lip and grabbed the dish rag out of the kitchen sink to clean up the splattered eggs. "So what happened at the police station? Was Liz able to I.D. him? Who was he?"

"Yeah, she I.D.'d him."

Cordelia looked up to see amusement in his eyes. Okay, this is weird, she thought. "Who was it? Someone we know?"

"Well, someone I know. But don't worry. You'll never meet him. It's all been taken care of."

She tore her eyes away from his, the hairs on the back of her neck prickling. He's taking the word cryptic to new heights tonight, she mused. She started mopping up the floor with the rag, the egg yolks turning it yellow.

Why didn't he use his key? she wondered suddenly, the thought causing her to frown as she stood up and washed out the dish rag. She knelt down again, soaking up the remaining yolk.

"Hey, Angel," she said casually.

"Yeah?"

"Why didn't you use your key?"

"I lost it," he said instantly.

It was a plausible answer--it really was. A lot of people lost their keys all the time. Angel was *so* not one of those people.

"Again?" she asked, keeping her voice light.

"It happens."

She narrowed her eyes. Angel had *never* lost the key to her apartment. He was lying to her. But why?

Cordelia finished wiping up her kitchen floor, and smiled when she saw her and Angel's reflections in the linoleum.

Then she froze.

Her heart began to pound wildly in her chest. She didn't know how it was possible, but the man standing behind her was most definitely *not* Angel. She thought quickly.

Shape-shifting demon of some kind. She tried to remember any tid-bit of information she could on how to kill one, but she wasn't sure she'd ever read anything on them period.

Stay calm, she told herself. I've been in lots of dangerous situations and gotten out okay. I just have to stay calm. As long as he doesn't know that I know he's not really Angel, I should be safe. Otherwise he would have killed me already.

Not a happy thought.

"Cordelia? You okay?" His voice was calm, but had an unmistakable edge to it.

"Yeah. It's just...my ribs are sore," she said, only partially lying. Her ribs were sore, but she was so much more than not okay. She stood up slowly and moved over to the sink again. She dumped the rag into the dish water, racking her mind, trying to come up with some piece of information she could use later. "So, you remember that Doyle's visiting this weekend, right? You, me, him and Wes are supposed to meet here on Saturday?"

"Uh, yeah. I remember."

"Good." She took a deep breath. Now came the acting part. She prayed she'd improved in the last few months. Cordelia lifted her gaze to the window and stared at his reflection. She gasped.

"What?" he asked.

She spun around to face him, her eyes wide. "You're not Angel."

"Of course I am."

Cordelia pointed to the window. "Since when do vampires have reflections?" she demanded.

His eyes narrowed and he moved toward her.

"Wesley!" she screamed. She backed up against the counter and fumbled around, searching for the knife she'd been using. She finally managed to grasp it in her hand and she held it out in front of her threateningly.

The shape shifter laughed. "You can't kill me with that."

"Maybe not, but it's not going to stop me from trying!" she snapped. She lunged forward and stabbed him in the shoulder.

He barely grimaced.

Cordelia watched in shock as he yanked the knife out of this shoulder blade. The wound healed instantly. No demon she'd ever researched had *that* ability.

"Cordelia? What's the matter?" Wesley stumbled into the kitchen entrance sleepily. "Angel, you're back."

"It's not Angel!" Cordelia said shakily.

"What?" the former-Watcher asked in confusion.

The shape shifter smiled at him. "Hey, Wes. What's up?"

Wesley looked from him to Cordelia, his eyes wary. "What's going on?"

"Don't worry. I just came here for Cordelia," he informed the other man.

"Like hell!" she snapped. She grabbed a can of soup out of the cabinet and hurled it at him.

The shape shifter stumbled backwards as the can hit him in the chest. Another can hit him in the head, courtesy of Dennis. He straightened up and glared at Cordelia. "I guess we do this the hard way." He turned to Wesley, who was moving towards him and wielding an axe, and the shape shifter held out his hand. A beam of red light shot from his palm and Wesley was thrown across the living room. He landed on the floor with a sickening thud.

"Wesley!" Cordelia cried. She tried to go to him, but the shape shifter reached out and grabbed her wrist. "Let me go!" She tried to swing around and kick him, but her jerked her arm behind her back roughly and pulled her up against him.

"Say goodnight," he whispered, his breath warm in her ear.

She shuddered as he touched her face. White hot pain ripped through her body and she knew she only had a few seconds of consciousness left. Her last thoughts were of Angel and Wesley. She prayed that Angel would return in time to save Wesley, and that she got to see them both once more before she died.


	10. Chapter 10

Liz shifted uncomfortably as she waited for Detective Lockley to lead her to the cell where the driver that had hit Cordelia was locked away.

She glanced back at Isabel and Alex who were talking quietly a few feet away. Angel stood nearby, and he gave her a brief, reassuring smile.

"Liz? You ready?"

Liz turned back to face the woman and nodded. She took a deep breath and followed her down a corridor, and then into the holding cell area.

"Do any of these men look familiar?" Kate asked, studying her intently.

Liz glanced around briefly and then froze. Max Evans was staring at her from behind bars, his eyes mirroring her own shock. For a second she couldn't even breathe.

"Do you recognize him?"

She blinked, having momentarily forgotten that the detective was still standing next to her. "Why is he here?"

"He was the driver."

"No, he wasn't," Liz said instantly. Before Kate had time to protest, she hurried to the cell and gripped the bars tightly. "Max, are you okay?"

He stood up and moved so he was standing right in front of her. "I'm fine," he whispered, staring into her eyes. "Are you all right?"

The concern and worry in his voice melted her heart. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Michael said that--"

"Yeah, Alex and Isabel told me," she interrupted softly.

"I was so afraid we wouldn't find you in time. Liz, if anything happened to you..."

"Shh. I'm safe, I promise," she assured him. He reached over and wound his hand around hers. She didn't pull away. "Max, what happened?"

"I don't know. I came here to find out if the police had any knowledge on your whereabouts and the next thing I knew I was being arrested for car theft and attempted murder," he said, his voice barely audible.

Liz shot a glance over at Kate, who was watching them suspiciously, her arms folded across her chest. "We'll get you out."

"Liz, somehow my fingerprints were in that car," Max told her.

She looked at him, confusion in her eyes. "I don't know what's going on, but right now we have to get you out of there." Liz reluctantly pulled her hand away from his and walked over to Kate. "Max wasn't the driver of that car. You have to let him go."

"Liz, his fingerprints were--"

"I know. I know how it looks, but it's not true. Max would never hurt anyone, let alone me."

Kate's eyes softened a bit. "I know how hard this is...to accept that someone you trusted set out to hurt you. But it happens all the time."

"Ask Isabel. Max is her brother. They just drove up from Roswell this morning. He wasn't in L.A. yesterday."

A flicker of doubt crossed the detective's face. She glanced over at Max, who was staring back. Then she looked at Liz again. "All right. Let's go talk to your friends. I want to get to the bottom of this right now." She turned away.

Liz looked over her shoulder at Max and held his gaze for a moment. She offered him a tentative smile which he returned, and then she turned and followed Kate.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, Mr. Evans. Your alibis checked out. I talked to Sheriff Valenti, and he said he saw you in Roswell yesterday afternoon." Kate Lockley unlocked the cell he was in.

The second Max stepped out of the jail, Isabel threw her arms around him. "God, Max. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Iz." He gazed past his sister and met Liz's eyes. Max stepped out of Isabel's embrace and walked over to Liz. Wordlessly she hugged him. He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes, breathed in the sweet scent of her hair. But only for a moment before she pulled away.

"Max, this is Angel. Angel, this is Max Evans," Liz said, motioning to the tall man standing behind her.

Max eyed him carefully, then noticed that Liz, Alex and Isabel seemed relaxed around him, and he reached out to shake his hand.

"Angel, I need to talk to you," Detective Lockley said tensely.

"Sure," he agreed. He handed his cell phone to Liz. "Could you call Cordelia and Wesley for me? Let them know what's going on?"

"Yeah."

Max looked at her curiously as Angel followed the detective. "Someone want to tell me what's going on?"

"That'd be nice. I think Alex and I missed out on the whole story," Isabel agreed, turning her gaze to Liz.

Liz glanced around. "Can we wait until we meet up with Michael and Maria? It's sort of a long story and I'd rather not have to tell it twice."

"Yeah, plus this isn't exactly the ideal place to discuss...things," Alex said, his tone nervous as he looked around at all the cops.

Max nodded. "We can wait."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel stepped into Kate's office and closed the door behind them.

She whirled around to face him. "You want to explain to me what the *hell* is going on?"

"If I knew, I would."

"Well, how did Max Evans' fingerprints get in that car? He was two states away when the crime was committed." Kate paced the floor in frustration.

Angel shook his head. "Wolfram and Hart is somehow involved with whoever's after Liz. I think they set up the hit-and-run with the intention of framing Max. Why I don't know."

"I want to know everything you find out about this case. I want copies of any evidence you find that points to that law firm." Her eyes flashed.

He nodded. "I understand." He turned to go.

"Angel."

"Yeah?"

She took a deep breath. "Look. About everything...I just want to say that I've been thinking about what your friend Cordelia said the other day. I don't blame *you* for my father's death."

Angel nodded, but remained silent.

"I don't think we can ever be friends," Kate said flatly. "But I don't think we should be enemies, either. We're working on the same side so..."

"I agree."

"Good."

Angel gave her a brief smile and turned around and walked out of the office.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maria looked around the dark city street, nervously inching closer to Michael as they walked towards the train station. They were supposed to meet the others in ten minutes.

Michael glanced at her sideways. "We're almost there."

"I know. I'm not lost."

He stopped suddenly, catching her arm. "Be quiet," he commanded.

She stared at him. "What's your problem?"

Michael leaned down and whispered, "We're being followed."

Maria's eyes widened and she swallowed hard. She casually glanced over her shoulder. Sure enough, three men weren't too far behind them. "What do we do?" she asked, her voice soft.

"Keep walking," he said grimly. "In front of me." He pulled her so she was doing just that.

"Hey, where you going?"

"Yeah, we're ready to play."

The men caught up with them, walking on either side of them.

"Keep walking," Michael ordered, and somehow Maria continued putting one foot in front of the other.

One of the men walked in step with her, staring at her the whole time. "I bet you'll taste real good." The man licked his lips.

She felt Michael tense behind her. "Shut up," he warned, his voice deadly low and full of hatred.

Just as they started to pass an alley, two more men stepped out in front of them. Maria halted and backed up right into Michael.

"There's only two," one of the men complained, scratching his bald head.

"Yeah, and look at them. Hardly enough to share," another commented.

"Michael?" she whispered nervously.

"I know." He glared at the five men. "Look, we don't have any money, so fuck off."

They all laughed.

"You talk big, but I can smell your fear."

"No, that would be your breath," Maria snapped, despite her anxiety.

"Ooh. I want a piece of her. She's feisty." The man licked his lips again and took a step towards her.

Michael narrowed his eyes. Then he held out his hand and concentrated. A beam of light threw two of them back up against the side of the building.

"What the hell--?" one of the other men said in shock.

The two men on the ground were on their feet again seconds later, growling and snarling savagely as their faces changed from human to monster-like with yellow eyes and fangs.

Maria shrieked and ducked as one of them dove at her.

"Oh, shit!" Michael muttered. He grabbed her hand. "Run!"

She didn't have to be told twice. She kept hold of Michael's hand as they raced down the sidewalk, the monsters just a few feet behind them.

"What the hell are those things, Michael?" she shouted as she ran.

"I don't know. Keep running," he urged as he released her hand. "I'll distract them."

"No way!"

"Maria, just go!" Michael stopped and turned to face them.

"I am *so* not leaving you here alo--"

"Go get Max and Isabel! Hurry!"

Maria's eyes filled with tears as they surrounded Michael. She turned to run, startled as a tall man in a black duster rounded the corner and waltzed right up to the group.

"Five against one? Now that's hardly a fair fight," the man said sarcastically. He pulled something out of his coat pocket and jammed it into the monster's back. It howled with pain and disappeared in a dust cloud.

Maria's mouth dropped open.

The other four monsters snarled at the man, their attention diverted away from Michael.

Maria backed up slowly, and bumped into someone. When she turned to see who it was, the monster standing behind her growled and grabbed her by her arms, baring his teeth. She screamed.

"Hey! Get away from her!"

Maria recognized the voice instantly.

Liz.

"Lizzie, run!" she screamed, trying to pull away from the monster.

Liz held out a cross as she ran towards Maria. The monster spun around and growled at her, but didn't get any closer.

"I have a bottle of holy water with your name on it, so back off!" Liz warned, taking two steps closer.

The monster let go of Maria but didn't run.

"Maria, get behind me," Liz commanded.

She didn't hesitate. For some reason the thing was afraid of her friend. "Lizzie, what is that?"

"Vampire," Liz informed her, keeping the cross held out in front of her.

"You're kidding, right?" She laughed nervously. When Liz didn't join in the laughter, Maria shuddered. "I think I'm gonna throw up."

A minute later, Michael attacked the thing from behind.

"Michael, no!" Liz shouted.

The vampire turned around and threw Michael to the sidewalk, opening his jaw wide to show his mouth full of fangs.

Liz shoved the cross into Maria's hand and pulled a wooden stake out of her jeans pocket. Maria watched in shock as Liz plunged the thing into the vampire's back, then fell to the ground as it exploded into dust.

At that minute, Max, Isabel and Alex ran up.

"Liz!" Max knelt down next to her. "What happened? Are you all right?" He ran his hands up and down her arms, checking for injuries.

She sat up and glanced over at Michael. "They got jumped by vampires."

Max, Alex and Isabel all stared at her. "What?"

Maria looked over at the man in the black duster who was still fighting with three vampires.

Liz climbed to her feet, taking Max's hand for support. "Angel needs our help."

"Actually, I think he's got it covered," Isabel said as he staked two of the remaining vampires at once and the dust flew.

The last vampire turned and fled.

Maria watched as the man Liz had called Angel caught up to it easily and killed it as well.

"Maria, are you okay?" Liz asked worriedly, turning her attention to her. She moved to Maria's side and hugged her tightly.

Maria hugged her back. "We have *major* catching up to do," she informed Liz.

Liz grinned. Then she looked around at the stunned faces of her other friends. "It's a long story."

Angel joined them a moment later. He glanced at Michael and Maria. "I'm Angel." He shook both their hands. "You two okay?"

Michael looked at him suspiciously. "Yeah."

Maria stared at the man. He defined the word hot. He had deep, beautiful brown eyes, a well-built figure, and dark blond spiky hair. She grinned as she noticed Isabel checking him out, too.

"Uh, guys? Can we go somewhere so we don't get attacked again?" Alex asked, looking around nervously.

"We? I didn't see you over there," Maria said indignantly.

"He's right," Angel agreed. "Let's get back to the car. I'm going to try and call Cordelia and Wesley again. Hopefully it won't be out of range now." He took the phone out of his pocket.

Maria walked next to Liz and Alex fell into step with her as well, with Max, Michael and Isabel walking just in front of them and Angel falling behind.

Liz and Alex quietly filled her in on how Max had been arrested, and how she'd met up with Angel and the others, and how they'd saved her life more than once.

"What I don't understand is how they could have mistaken me for a car thief. How did my fingerprints end up in that car?" Max asked aloud. "Why would someone want to set me up?"

"They didn't want to set you up."

The entire group stopped and turned to face Angel, who had his cell phone pressed to his ear.

Liz frowned. "What do you--"

"They used you as bait," he said grimly. He looked at Liz for a second, and her eyes widened. Angel slid the phone back into his pocket and took off running, Liz right behind him.

"What's going on?" Maria asked Alex.

"I don't know, but we better hurry up," he said. He grabbed her hand and started following the others.

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Angel ran up both long flights of stairs in Cordelia's apartment building without stopping. He heard the others behind him, Liz just a few steps behind.

When he hit the second floor, he raced down the hallway, praying that he was wrong, but knowing he wasn't.

The apartment door was open a crack. "Cordelia! Wesley!" he shouted.

Wesley was lying on the floor in the living room.

Angel rushed to his side, and Liz joined him seconds later, her other friends standing behind them.

"Wesley? Wesley, can you hear me?" Angel asked anxiously.

Liz checked his pulse. "He's alive. Wesley!"

Wesley moaned. "Cordelia..."

Angel met Liz's fearful eyes, shoved aside his own fear, and looked back down at his friend. "Wesley, it's Angel. Can you hear me?"

Wesley's eyes opened and he looked up, grimacing. "Angel?"

"Yeah, it's me." He carefully helped the former-Watcher to a sitting position. "What happened? Who did this?"

Wesley blinked and rubbed his head. "I was sleeping and I heard Cordelia scream...when I came to see what was wrong, you were standing there. Cordelia said it wasn't you...the next thing I knew you...he...held out his hand and threw me across the room with a beam of light."

Angel stared at him.

"Angel, it was you, but it wasn't you," Wesley said, staring back at him.

"It's some kind of shape-shifting demon. Working for Wolfram and Hart. I think that's what's after Liz."

"Is she okay? Cordelia?"

Angel fisted his hands. "She's gone." He didn't even have to check the rest of the apartment. He *knew* she wasn't there.

Liz stood up suddenly. "I have to talk to my friends. I'll be right back."

Angel nodded absently.

"I couldn't do anything...I couldn't stop him..."

"It's okay, Wes. We're going to find her."

_Even if I have to kill every lawyer at Wolfram and Hart to do it._

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The six of them stood around Cordelia's bedroom, staring at one another. Liz stood in between Alex and Maria, and Max stood in between Isabel and Michael.

It was the first time in months where it had just been the six of them. Liz wished it could have been under better circumstances.

"Someone's tried to kill me. More than once," she began quietly. "When I first go to L.A.--a man chased me with a knife. Angel saved me. The hotel I was staying in blew up. When I changed hotels, someone broke into my room and ransacked it. Then yesterday, someone tried to run me down with their car--Cordelia knocked me out of the way." She hesitated, knowing what she was about to say would upset people, but it had to be said. When she spoke, her voice was firm and assured. "I think it's Nasedo."

Michael scowled. "We can't assume that--"

"Michael, look at the proof. Wesley said someone who looked just like Angel came in and shocked him with a beam of light," Alex pointed out.

Liz was relieved for the support.

"It could be one of our enemies. We don't know it's Nasedo," Michael said, glaring at Alex.

"Why would one of our enemies be after Liz?" Max asked quietly.

"Why would Nasedo be after her?" he retorted.

"Because I'm holding Max back from his destiny," she said softly.

Michael looked at her.

She met his gaze. "Nasedo wants to go home. The only way that can happen is if your enemies on earth are defeated. For that to happen, you three have to accept your destinies. Max hasn't done that because of me."

"Liz--" Max began, shaking his head.

"Max, it's the truth. We both know it."

"By killing you, Max has no reason to not accept his role as king and be with Tess," Isabel finished, closing her eyes. "God."

"I don't believe this," Michael said angrily, turning away.

"Michael, Nasedo is a killer. We know that," Max started.

"In self-defense, Max!" Michael exploded. "He did it to protect us! To protect himself!"

"That's what he thinks he's doing now," Maria spoke up quietly.

He turned to face her, but remained silent.

Maria lifted her gaze to meet his. "He thinks killing Liz will protect your people, Michael. He sees her as a potential threat to Max's safety--to all of your safety. He sees that Max won't walk away from Liz. He knows that Max would risk everything for her because he's done it before."

Liz stared at the floor, her eyes welling up with tears that she struggled to hold back. Maria noticed, and reached over and put her arm around Liz's waist. Liz managed a feeble smile.

"It also explains Max's fingerprints being in the car," Alex said suddenly. "He can change his fingerprints, but not his bone structure."

"That doesn't make any sense. If Nasedo wanted Max to accept his destiny, why the hell would he set him up for murder?" Michael demanded.

"Because it was a double-trap."

They all turned to see Angel standing in the doorway.

"He wants Liz dead. Max couldn't help her from jail. He knew I wouldn't leave her alone while she was in danger, and he knew that we'd go down to jail to I.D. the hit-and-run driver. This Nasedo is working for a demon law firm called Wolfram and Hart, and they're out for blood. Mine." Angel's gaze landed on Liz. "So I want to know everything about about who took Cordelia. And I want to know right now."


	11. Chapter 11

Cordelia drifted along the lines of consciousness and sleep. Everything surrounding her was dark and she could feel her self sinking more deeply into the nothingness. Sinking didn't require energy and she was so tired...

Overwhelming terror flooded her mind.

If she allowed herself to sink she may never re-surface.

So she struggled. Struggled to stay afloat, to pull herself out of the darkness. After what seemed like an eternity, she could make out a sliver of light, dim as it was. As she moved toward the light, she began to feel a painful pounding, but she forced herself to keep going.

The closer she got to the light, the more pain she felt. She wondered if she'd had a vision and had hit her head on something.

"Wake up, Cordelia," she heard in the distance.

Slowly she opened her eyes, grimacing at the pain. "Angel," she murmured.

He smiled at her. "How's the head?"

Cordelia tried to move, but found she couldn't. She was sitting in a hard-back chair, her arms bound behind her. "You're not Angel," she said flatly.

His smile widened. "Good guess."

She glanced around. Concrete floor, lots of stacked wooden crates, and a high ceiling. The place was dimly lit and the air was damp and chilly. She wondered if there was some unspoken agreement among bad guys that they hold their victims hostage in old warehouses. She sincerely hoped this one didn't have stairs.

Cordelia turned her attention back to the shape shifter. "Who are you? What do you want with me?" she demanded.

He stood up, moved closer to her. "Liz Parker."

She stared at him. "You're the one who's after Liz? Why?"

"Because she'll ruin everything. She is not his destiny." He turned away from her.

"Whose destiny?"

"You ask too many questions."

Cordelia scoffed. "Well, excuse the hell out of me for wanting to know why I've been kidnapped."

"It serves a double purpose, actually," a new voice said from the shadows.

She narrowed her eyes. She knew that voice.

Lindsey McDonald emerged from the shadows, smiling at her. "You see, Ms. Chase, Angel is protecting Liz. And once he finds out that we have you, he'll be willing to deal. You for her. And once he's here--" Lindsey held up a crossbow he'd been hiding behind his back.

She swallowed the nauseous feeling that crept into her stomach. "First of all, no way has Angel survived two hundred some years on earth just to be killed by a one-armed loser like you," she spat viciously, feeling a moment of brief inner triumph as Lindsey's smile left his face and he glared at her. "And secondly, he won't agree to your little deal. Angel protects the innocent. He won't risk Liz's life. Not even for me."

"Oh, but you're wrong. You're his seer. He needs you so he can save everyone else. What's the life of one girl against hundreds of other lives?" Lindsey's smirk returned.

"To Angel? Everything," Cordelia replied, her tone confident.

"I'm willing to be that you'r wrong on that one." He pulled a cell phone out of his suit pocket. "But let the games begin."

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Liz stared back at Angel, unsure of what to say. When the telephone rang, she jumped. Angel picked up the phone. "Hello?"

She turned around to face her friends. "We have to tell him," she said bluntly. She trusted Angel. And Cordelia's life depended on him knowing the truth.

"Are you crazy?" Michael demanded. "He's a complete stranger! We don't know anything about him!"

"Michael, he saved my life. So did Cordelia. If Nasedo has her, it's because of me."

"Uh, guys," Alex said hesitantly.

"It isn't your life that will be in danger if we tell him," Michael snapped. "I don't trust him."

"You don't trust anyone," Max pointed out.

"I knew you'd side with her. God, Max, would it kill you to back me up for once?"

Liz looked at Max. "I trust him, Max. Please."

He stared back at her.

"Guys," Alex said again, hedging backwards.

"I can't believe you're even considering this! What do we know about this guy? Nothing!" Michael pointed out, running a hand through his spiky hair in frustration. "We have no reason to trust him!"

"I trust Liz," Max answered quietly, his eyes locked on hers. She thanked him silently.

"Uh, well, actually, there is one thing we know about him," Alex said.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?" Michael asked, annoyed.

Alex nodded towards the mirror. "Well, he doesn't have a reflection."

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"Angel. I had a feeling you'd be there."

"Lindsey. Where is she?" Angel demanded.

Lindsey chuckled. "Who's she?"

"Cordelia. Where is she?"

"Ah, yes. Cordelia. Your pretty little seer." There was a brief pause. "She is very pretty, isn't she? And great company, I might add. Lots of fun. Very entertaining."

Angel's temper flared. "Lindsey, so help me, if you harm one hair on her head, I'll cut off more than just your hand!"

"Careful, Angel. I'm the one holding all the cards here." Lindsey's voice lost its amused tone.

"What do you want, Lindsey?"

"I'll let you know."

The dial tone blared in Angel's ear. He slammed the hand set down onto its cradle and barely resisted the urge to yank it out of the wall and hurl it across the room.

Instead, he turned to face the group of teens. "Somebody start talking," he commanded.

Max stepped forward and looked him in the eye. "The man who took your friend...his name is Nasedo." He looked over his shoulder at his friends, and then back at Angel. "He's an alien."

Angel stared back at him. He remembered Liz's calm reaction to finding out that vampires, ghosts, and demons existed. And it suddenly made sense. Why would those things scare or surprise her if she knew aliens existed?

"I beg your pardon?"

Angel turned around and saw Wesley standing behind him.

"Did you just say the man that took Cordelia is an alien?" the former-Watcher asked, his voice in awe.

"Yes," Max answered. Michael glared at him.

"What powers does he have? Besides the ability to shape-shift?" Angel asked, getting right to the point. He needed to know exactly what he was dealing with so he could rescue Cordelia, keep Liz and her friends safe, and hopefully find a way to stop Lindsey McDonald.

Max and Liz exchanged a look. "We're not sure...we've only known him for a little while."

Angel wondered why Liz would protect a killer shape-shifting alien, unless...

"You're one too, aren't you?" he asked.

Max nodded. "But we're different. We don't know much about who we are or where we come from. We know that our D.N.A. was combined with human D.N.A. We can't shape-shift because our bone-structure is human."

"Our powers aren't very advanced," Isabel said quietly.

Angel looked at Liz. "You're human."

"Yeah," she admitted. "Maria, Alex and I are all three human."

"Why does he want you?"

"Max is in love with Liz, but he's destined to be with someone else. He's supposed to save his people and return to his planet," Maria answered, sitting down on Cordelia's bed.

"Nasedo thinks you're a danger to Max's destiny," Wesley said.

Liz nodded.

"What I don't get is why would Nasedo be working for a law firm?" Alex spoke up as he sat down next to Maria.

"Yeah, and why are these lawyers after you, anyway?" Michael added, his eyes narrow and suspicious. "Is it because you're a vampire?"

Angel looked at Liz.

"Uh, we sort of saw your lack of a reflection in the mirror," Max explained.

"Wolfram and Hart is a law-firm on the side of evil. They defend demons and all sorts of nasty creatures. We've had several unfortunate encounters with them," Wesley supplied.

"And they're after me because I've messed up a few of their plans," he added.

"Who's this Lindsey guy?"

"One of the junior partners at Wolfram and Hart."

"What's his problem?" Michael asked, folding his arms across his chest.

"I cut off his hand," Angel replied darkly.

Liz turned to face Michael. "In order to save Cordelia's life. It's a long story."

Angel almost smiled. Cordelia certainly had filled Liz in on the details in a short amount of time. He was glad she'd finally made a real female friend--not like one of those brainless idiots from Sunnydale she'd hung around with back in high school.

"How do we stop Nasedo?" Angel asked.

Isabel drew in a deep breath. "We don't know."

"We're not sure he can be stopped." Max looked at Isabel and then Michael. "Tess said he can't be killed."

"Who's Tess?" Wesley asked in confusion.

Liz met Angel's eyes, though only for a brief moment. Just long enough for him to see the very obvious raw pain reflected in her eyes. "Max's destiny." She dropped down onto the bed next to Alex, who put an arm around her shoulders.

"Maybe Tess said he couldn't be killed in order to protect Nasedo so someone wouldn't try," Maria muttered.

"I don't think so. Remember when he was shot? The stones are what brought him back," Isabel pointed out.

Alex looked at her, his eyes widening. "Which means if we can kill him, as long as we don't use the stones, he'll stay dead. Right?"

"So what? We're just going to murder him?"

"Michael, he's a killer. He's been trying to kill Liz. He's got an innocent woman kidnapped and he won't hesitate to kill her if he has to," Max said, his voice taking on an edge it didn't have before.

"He's right, Michael. Nasedo has to be stopped," Isabel agreed quietly.

"What stones?" Angel asked, looking at Max.

"They're from our planet. They have some sort of life-restoring quality to them. We had to use them on Michael once when he was sick. And then again on Nasedo after he'd been shot."

"We need a plan," Wesley spoke up. "Nasedo seems to be very powerful, and obviously dangerous."

"So what do we do? We don't know where they've taken Cordelia," Liz said, biting her lower lip.

"We wait. They'll vall back," Angel said, pushing down his own frustration, his voice determined as he spoke. "Lindsey made a big mistake using the people I care about against me. He thinks he found my greatest weakness, and that might be true. What he doesn't know is that it's also my greatest strength."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia was alone.

She didn't know where Lindsey and the shape-shifter had gone, but she was glad they had left.

She shifted in the seat, leaning forward and trying to get her hands loose. She pulled against the ropes. They were tied tight and rubbed painfully against her skin but she ignored the pain.

Not for the first time, Cordelia wished she had Buffy's Slayer strength. If she did, she'd have been free in no time. Hell, Buffy could escape chains without much effort.

Cordelia gritted her teeth and tried to slide one hand out of the ropes.

"Damn. I suppose it would be out of the question for one measly little divine intervention?" she muttered.

Almost as soon as the words left her mouth, the ropes seemed to loosen and she managed to pull her hands free. Her eyes lit up and she quickly jumped to her feet.

"Sorry to spoil your little plan, Lindsey, but nobody uses me as bait," she said under her breath. She took a deep breath and hurried out of the corner they had her in, searching for an exit.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You're sure it's wise to allow her out so soon?" Nasedo turned to Lindsey, a doubtful expression on his face.

Lindsey smiled as he watched the monitor on the office desk. Cordelia had just escaped with alittle help from Nasedo's alien powers. "Oh, this is just phase 2. She won't get far, don't worry."

"I thought the plan was for Angel to be here."

"Oh, he'll be here. They won't kill her. They'll just keep her busy until then."

Nasedo smiled.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wesley watched as Angel paced the kitchen floor of Cordelia's apartment. It had been three hours since Lindsey had called. Wesley's own nerves were frazzled and the tension among Liz and her friends wasn't helping anyone.

He glanced at Liz, who sat staring at the kitchen table, her face worried but calm.

Her friend Maria DeLuca sat right next to her, her head resting in her hands. Her short blond hair was held out of her face by two buttefly clips.

Next to Maria was Alex Whitman, who drummed his fingers on the table silently. He appeared tense, but looked more worried about the girl on his other side.

Isabel Evans sat at on the kitchen chair next to him, her knees pulled up to her chest, and her arms pulled around them tightly. Her chin rested on her knees as she stared into space.

Michael Guerin sat on the kitchen counter, a perpetual scowl on his face as he stared at Max. Max stood at the sink, staring out the window into the dark night.

Wesley's gaze traveled back to Angel, who suddenly stopped pacing.

"Angel?" Wesley asked hesitantly.

The phone rang.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Angel, nice to talk to you again," Lindsey said, his voice full of false pleasantry.

"Tell me what you want," Angel said bluntly, even though he had a good idea what the response was going to be.

"Right down to business as usual. I want you and the Parker girl."

"No deal. Liz doesn't get hurt."

"There's no deal without her."

"Fine. Then I hunt you down and rip your lungs out through your nose. And Lindsey, I could probably do it."

"What a lovely image," Lindsey said with a slight chuckle. "But you're forgetting two things. You don't know where I am, and I still have something you want."

"Let me talk to her."

"I'm afraid that's not possible. She's a bit...indisposed at the moment."

"How do I know she's still alive?" Angel demanded.

"Oh, she's alive. But the longer you play games the less likely she is to stay that way."

Angel cursed silently, his hands curling into fists.

"I must say again that this seer of yours is quite entertaining. She withstands torture better than most men and demons I know."

Angel nearly lost it. A growl formed low in his throat and he struggled to keep control over his vampire side.

"Reconsidering that deal, Angel?" Lindsey taunted.

"Where?"

"I thought you'd see things my way." There was a pause. "The old warehouse on Center Street. Downtown. One hour. You and the Parker girl."

"And you'll let Cordelia go."

"That's the deal."

"We'll be there." Angel hung up the phone and turned to face Wesley and the six teens staring at him impatiently. "All right. Here's the plan..."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia sighed in frustration as she walked into another dead end of crates. It was the second one she'd run into in ten minutes. So much for getting out of here before Angel showed up to rescue her. The whole place was a big damned maze, and she was starting to think there wasn't really an exit.

She carefully retraced her steps, and wound up back at the first set of cross paths. The one straight ahead would lead her back to the corner she'd been tied up in.

That left a choice of going either left or right. What was it she'd learned in Girl Scouts? Something about following the flow of the river if you got lost in the woods...

Well, she wasn't in the woods, and there was no river, but she figured she could use the same theory anyway. She'd just keep going to the right no matter what and she'd eventually get to the exit, providing there actually *was* one.

Cordelia took a deep breath and headed right. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, what's going on?" Kate Lockley leaned against her car and gazed at Angel and Wesley as they got out of Angel's car. They were in a parking lot outside an old storage warehouse on Center Street.

"You wanted proof that Wolfram and Hart were breaking the law? Lindsey McDonald had Cordelia kidnapped and she's being held hostage in that warehouse," Angel informed her, and she could tell he was barely holding onto his temper.

"Why would they kidnap--" She stopped mid-sentence and stared at him. "To get to you."

"And Liz." He nodded towards the jeep that pulled up and parked next to his car.

Kate glanced at Liz, and at the other teens as they jumped out of their vehicle. "All right. Obviously you have a plan. Let's hear it."

"Liz and I go inside and get Cordy, and hopefully Lindsey. When we bring him out, you arrest him."

"That's your plan?" She couldn't keep the doubt out of her voice. "You're putting an innocent girl's life in jeopardy for no real reason?"

"It wasn't his decision," Liz spoke up. "Cordelia's in trouble because of me. If the only way to make sure she's safe is to make them think Angel is trading me for her, then that's what has to be done."

Kate met her gaze and recognized the determination in her eyes. She turned to face Angel. "I'm going with you."

"No. I need you and Wesley to stay out here with Liz's friends and make sure they stay safe."

"Besides, there's a possibility there are security cameras and if they see anyone but us--" Liz began.

"--it could cost Cordelia her life," Angel finished.

Kate looked back and forth between them. "Who's after you anyway?" she asked Liz, who quickly looked away.

Angel lowered his voice. "It's a...thing."

Kate narrowed her eyes. "I see. I assume you know how to handle this...thing."

He darted a glance over at Wesley. "Yeah. No problem."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"We should get going," Angel said quietly to Liz.

She nodded in agreement and turned to face her friends. Maria had fear written all over her face. Liz walked over to her. "It'll be okay, Maria," she said.

"I don't like this, Lizzie," Maria whispered. "I have a really, really bad feeling."

"Angel won't let anything happen to me," she said, sounding more assured than she felt.

"Liz, Nasedo's powerful. He's already killed who knows how many people. Let Angel go by himself. He's a vampire. He can take care of himself," Maria urged.

"I won't risk Cordelia's life because I'm afraid of Nasedo. I can't." Liz hugged her and then Alex. "I'll be all right."

Isabel looked as nervous right then as she had when Max had been taken by Agent Pierce of the FBI special unit. "Be careful," she whispered, and then, to Liz's surprise, Isabel hugged her.

"I will," she promised, hugging her back. She looked at Michael, who met her gaze. She felt a moment of understanding pass between them.

She took a deep breath and stepped over to Max. Their eyes locked, and for a long moment, neither of them spoke. Then in a broken voice, he whispered, "You come back to me."

Tears filled her eyes and she nodded. "Count on it."

And before she could stop him, Max leaned over and kissed her lips, gently at first, and then more passionately. Her arms slid around his neck as she kissed him back.

*Flash* Max's face hovered over hers as she lay on the floor of the Crashdown the day she'd been shot. "You're all right now. You're all right," he told her, his eyes gentle and frantic all at the same time.

*Flash* Max kissing her for the first time on her roof.

*Flash* She and Max, curled up asleep in one another's arms out in the desert after finding the orb.

*Flash* "You were what kept me alive. The thought of you. The way your eyes look into mine. Your smile. The touch of your skin. Your lips. Knowing you has made me human. Whether I die tomorrow or fifty years from now, my destiny is the same. It's you. I want to be with you, Liz. I love you," Max whispered as he caressed her cheek.

The visions stopped as the kiss ended. Liz pulled away from him, but couldn't break away from his gaze right away. "I love you," she mouthed. Then she turned away and went to Angel's side. "Let's do this," she said, her voice strong as they walked towards the warehouse entrance.

She would come back no matter what.

She had to.

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Cordelia froze as the lights in the warehouse suddenly dimmed. She could still see, but just barely.

Okay. No big deal. Just keep going to the right, she told herself, keeping her hand on the side of the crate-wall.

Which wouldn't have been a problem, except she suddenly heard growling behind her. She turned very slowly, afraid sudden movements would cause whatever it was to attack her.

Cordelia struggled for control over her fear as she stared at the three vampires. They were average size vamps--not real big, and no apparent features distinguishing them from other vampires she'd encountered.

The problem was she had no weapons. Not even a cross. Not a good thing. In fact, as they began circling her on all three sides, things began to look very bad.

But Cordelia had been in a lot of bad situations in the past four years of her life and she had survived to tell the tales.

And she *so* wasn't ready to die.

Besides that, she had a reputation to uphold. She was, after all, Cordelia Chase. No one made her weak and defenseless and got by with it.

Cordelia straightened up and eyed the vampires one at a time. "So you three work for Wolfram and Hart." She rolled her eyes. "Why on earth would you do that? It's so obvious the three of you could do much better."

The vampire on her right frowned. "What?"

"Oh, come on. Three big strong vamps like yourselves--why do you need to work for a bunch of corporate sissy boys like Lindsey McDonald? You should be telling *him* what to do." Cordelia had their full attention now. She turned on all the charm she could muster and smiled sweetly. "Seriously. You don't need him. Did he promise you money? Power? Fame?"

"Actually, just dinner," the vamp in front of her responded.

She sighed. "That's it? One of the most powerful guys in L.A. couldn't offer you something more than one measly meal? I bet he expects you to share, too, doesn't he?"

The three vampires exchanged looks.

"What is with that? You guys could get a better meal on your own than by working for that low-life. You deserve better," Cordelia informed them.

"She's right! We've been had!" The vampire on her left said angrily. "I'm gonna rip his throat out!"

"That's the spirit!" Cordelia smiled at them.

They smiled back at her. "Thanks."

"Yeah, let's go find that scawny boy!"

She watched in satisfaction as the three vampires turned and walked away in search of Lindsey. Cordelia turned to the right, a smile on her face. There wasn't a man dead or alive she couldn't wrap around her little finger if she set her mind to it.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lindsey and Nasedo watched the monitor and both smiled as Angel and Liz walked inside the warehouse.

"A half an hour early, just as you predicted," Nasedo said, a bit impressed.

"I've studied his actions and his past more than he'll ever know," Lindsey said, a smug smile on his face.

"Why don't you just kill him and get it over with?"

"Because. I want to torture him."

"So torture him. Then kill him. This is the perfect opportunity," Nasedo pointed out. Even though he'd lived on earth for the past fifty three years, he didn't understand humans. If someone got in Nasedo's way, he just killed them. End of story. With humans, they had this thing for torture. The problem was the intended victim often got away. Oh, well. It was no business of his. Quite frankly he didn't give a damn what happened to the vampire one way or another as long as he removed Liz Parker from the picture.

"True. But some things are worse than death." Lindsey leaned forward, his eyes narrowing as he stared at a close-up shot of Angel. "A whole lot worse."

Nasedo stood up. "I think it's time I got ready."

Lindsey nodded absently.

Nasedo concentrated and used his energy to shape-shift. He turned around in a circle. "Well. How do I look?"

Lindsey tore his gaze away from the monitor. "Why, Ms. Chase. You look absolutely stunning."

They both laughed.

"Knock 'em dead," Lindsey told him.

"Oh, don't worry," Nasedo responded. "I will."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liz glanced around the dimly lit warehouse and stuck close to Angel. "Um, I hate to state the obvious, but...this kind of looks like a big maze."

He nodded. "Lindsey's pulling out al the stops for this one." He paused at a corner and looked both directions.

"Which way?" she asked tentatively.

Angel frowned and appeared deep in thought for a moment. "Left. If we keep going left we'll eventually see the whole place and find Cordelia."

Liz nodded and followed him, ignoring her nervousness. "Detective Lockley...is she trustworthy?"

Angel hesitated. "I think so. She hasn't tried to stake me or anything and she knows what I am."

"Who," she corrected him instantly.

He turned to look at her. "What?"

"She knows *who* you are."

"I'm a vampire."

"I know. And Max is an alien. But he's a person."

"I'm not."

"Yes, you are," Liz argued.

"I don't breathe. My heart doesn't beat."

"So? You still eat...or, well, drink. You have problems and you use your brain to solve them. You have feelings. You care about your friends. You walk on two legs and you have opposable thumbs. In my book, you're just as much a person as I am." Liz folded her arms across her chest.

Angel tried to hide a smile but didn't respond. He stopped suddenly and she almost ran into him.

"What is it?" she whispered.

"Do you hear that?"

"What?"

"I hear something--someone crying." Angel took off running and she quickly followed him through a maze of crates.

Cordelia was huddled on the floor, crying. She was covered in dust and dirt and there was a large bruise on her forehead.

"Cordelia!" Angel knelt down next to her.

She looked up. "Angel?" she whispered meekly.

"I'm here. It's okay."

Liz watched as Angel scooped her up into his arms gently and stood up. "Let's go," she urged, turning back the way they'd came from.

"We have to find Lindsey. He's going to pay for what he's done," Angel said vehemently.

She frowned. "She needs medical treatment."

"It won't take that long to find him. I can smell him."

A strange sensation crept up Liz's spine, but she followed him farther into the warehouse.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia hurried along the right side of the crate-wall maze. She had to be close to finding an exit. She'd been walking for nearly an hour.

She could practically smell freedom just around the corner.

She couldn't wait to get home and take a nice, hot bubble bath, have a mug of cocoa and crawl into bed. She hoped Dennis and Angel and Wesley weren't too worried about her.

She rounded the corner and practically ran into Liz and Angel. She started to smile until she realized that Angel was carrying someone who looked exactly like her.

Her heart sunk.

"Uh, Angel," Liz said hesitantly, looking at the girl in his arms and then at her. "Which one's really Cordelia?"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kate tapped her foot impatiently and watched the seconds tick by on her watch. She glanced over at Wesley who was doing the same thing. Max Evans was staring intently at the warehouse door while the other four teens talked softly.

"That's it. I'm going in," she informed Wesley.

He looked at her, startled. "I'm not sure--"

"I can handle it. There are two innocent civilians in there who may need help!"

"There are three innocent civilians in there," he corrected her quietly.

Kate looked away. "I'm going." She straightened her shoulders and walked to the door, her jaw set and her hand on her gun holster.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Where's she going?" Michael demanded as he watched Kate go into the warehouse.

"I don't know, but I'm going in, too," Max said.

Isabel grabbed his arm fearfully. "Max--"

"It'll be fine, Iz." He pulled away and jogged to the door, leaving the others to stare after him.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Uh, Angel? How do we know which one is which?" Liz asked nervously, backing away slowly.

Cordelia stared at the shape shifter in Angel's arms. "You bastard!"

The girl looked up at Angel. "Angel, that's him! That's the demon!" she said weakly.

Angel carefully set the girl on her feet and stared at Cordelia. He advanced on her quickly and she backed away, suddenly remembering the dream she'd had a few nights ago.

"Angel," she whispered fearfully. "It's me."

The girl behind him smirked at her.

This was it. She was going to die at the hands of one of her best friends. This had to have been Lindsey's plan all along. It wasn't to kill Angel. It was for Angel to kill her. She couldn't let this happen. "Angel, listen to me. I'm the real Cordelia," she said, her voice strong.

His eyes softened as he gazed at her and she suddenly understood. He knew. She didn't have time to sigh in relief as Angel spun suddenly, throwing the shape shifter against a wall of crates, his face changing. "Cordy, Liz! Run!" he growled as he threw himself at the demon.

Cordelia ran towards Liz, whose eyes were wide. She only made it a few short steps when suddenly a bright red light lit up the warehouse.

Angel was thrown into the opposite wall of crates, the red light surrounding and apparently paralyzing him.

"Angel!" she cried.

The shape shifter smiled in satisfaction and turned to her. She watched in horror as it morphed into Angel.

The real Angel on the floor wasn't moving, though his eyes were open.

Cordelia turned to Liz. "Run!"

Before she could respond, Liz was surrounded by the same glowing red light.

"Poor lonely little Cordelia. Now what can you do?" The shape shifter tsked. "All alone. But you always were anyway. No one cares about you. So you might as well be dead."

Cordelia backed away as the demon wearing Angel's face advanced on her menacingly. He pulled along butcher knife out of his pocket and held it up for her to see. The blade glittered from the reflection of red light.

She tried to dart away, but slammed into some kind of invisible wall. There was no where left to go. She was trapped. Cordelia shrunk back against the wall of crates behind her in horror as he moved closer.

He smiled widely and leaned in close. "You'd always be second best, Cordelia. Just the runner up, never first choice," he whispered, his breath warm against her ear.

Cordelia kicked at him uselessly, trying desperately to get away. He pinned her against the wall with the weight of his body.

"Say goodbye." The shape shifter brought the knife down into her stomach hard.

She screamed as the blade sliced through her skin, feeling like her stomach had been set on fire. She barely felt the second and third stab wounds as she collapsed onto the ground.

Angel's face hovered above her for moment. "This is the last face you're ever gonna see," he told her coldly.

Seconds later the world turned black.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nasedo stood up. He wiped the knife off with his hands, licking the blood off his fingers. He frowned and looked at Angel, who was still paralyzed. "I don't see the big attraction to blood. Of course, I'm not a vampire." He cocked his head sideways. "Although I must say, her blood was pretty sweet. Feel free to drain her when I'm done here."

Nasedo turned to Liz and smiled as he saw the terror in her eyes as he moved towards her, knife raised again.

That was when the shots rang out.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angel was suddenly able to move again as the red light disappeared. He never saw Nasedo fall, or Kate Lockley standing a few feet away, gun in her hands as she looked on in horror.

All he saw was Cordelia.

He crawled over to her, staring down at her pale, lifeless body. Blood seeped from her body, staining her clothes and making an ever-quickly-growing puddle beneath and around her.

"No..." he whispered. He pressed his ear to her chest. There was no heartbeat. "No! No! Cordelia!" Angel looked up helplessly at Kate and Liz.

Liz covered her mouth in horror as tears streaked down her cheeks.

Angel cradled Cordelia's head in his lap. "I'm so sorry, Cordy...I'm so sorry..."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kate Lockley watched as tears ran down Angel's face as he apologized over and over to his fallen friend. Something broke inside of her and tears filled her own eyes. And Kate did something she hadn't done since she was a teenager.

She began to pray.

She prayed to any god that would listen for a miracle--that somehow Cordelia Chase hadn't really just died.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Liz! Liz!"

She heard Max calling her name, but she couldn't respond. Her throat was choked up with sobs. This was all her fault. If she had never run away, Cordelia Chase would still be alive right now.

A moment later she felt herself lifted off the floor and into familiar arms. "Liz! Are you okay? Liz!" Max pulled away and looked at her frantically. "Are you hurt?"

"No," she managed to choke out, shaking her head. She pointed to Angel and Cordelia. "It's her. Max! She's--she's..."

Max looked over her shoulder, his eyes widening. He looked at Liz for a split-second and then set her down on her feet and ran over to kneel at the girl's side. Liz knelt down right next to him, not caring that her jeans were soaking up blood.

"Let me help her," Max said to Angel, who just stared at him through his tears and grief.

Max swallowed hard and placed his hand over the wound in her stomach. He closed his eyes as his hand began to glow white.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cordelia found herself in a beautiful meadow of wild flowers. Brightly colored butterflies danced around her and a pretty purple and silver one landed on her arm.

"Princess."

She whirled around, her face breaking into a wide grin. She ran towards him. "Doyle!"

Doyle laughed and wrapped his arms around her, spinning her around in a circle. "It's good to see you, Princess."

Cordelia pulled away from his embrace and looked up at him. "What is this place, Doyle?"

He looked around, smiling at the image she had conjured up. "Someplace you can't stay. Not now anyway."

She looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean your fight's not over yet. You have to go back. It's not your time."

"But..." Realization dawned on her. "I'm dead?"

"For the moment. It's only temporary." Doyle gazed at her. "You're needed down there."

"Right. The vision thing." She sighed.

"No."

Cordelia looked at him in confusion. "What?"

"Everything depends on you, Princess. And I'm not just talking about the visions."

"What are you talking about?"

"That's something you'll have to figure out on your own."

She rolled her eyes. "Even in death you can be infuriating," she said, though they both knew she was joking.

Doyle smiled at her. "Go back, Princess."

"But...I don't know the way," Cordelia protested.

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead gently. "Yes, you do. Close your eyes and follow your heart. It'll lead you back to where you're supposed to be."

"I miss you," she whispered.

"I'll be around when you really need me. I'm watching out for you. Angel, too. And Wesley. I'm a...guardian demon of sorts." He smiled at her again. "You have to go back. Before it's too late."

"Thank you." Cordelia hugged him one last time. Then she closed her eyes and drifted into darkness.

The next thing she knew, she felt a terrible pain in her stomach, but it only lasted for a few seconds. "Am I there yet?" she murmured softly as her eyes fluttered open.

Angel was staring down at her.

"Angel?" Cordelia sat up slowly, her gaze locked on his.

Wordlessly he pulled her into an embrace. Cordelia was stunned for a moment. Angel had only voluntarily hugged her once--and that was when he had been under the influence of some kind of weird sensitivity-hypnosis thing.

"Thank you," Angel whispered, though she wasn't sure if he was talking to her or not, and why he'd be thanking her if he was.

When he let her go, she looked around and saw Kate with a stunned expression on her face; Liz, who was sitting next to a teen boy she didn't recognize; and the shape-shifter dead on the ground.

"Okay, I think I missed something because I got stabbed and I'm not in any--" She stopped as she looked down at her stomach. Her tattered shirt was stained in blood, but through the holes she could see something glowing silver, and she could just about swear it was a handprint.

Cordelia looked around at everyone again. "What just happened?"

Kate, still looking baffled, replied, "That's what I'd like to know."


	12. Chapter 12

Cordelia had barely slept, despite how exhausted she felt. Her body was tired, but it seemed her mind had taken a shot of hazelnut latte followed by a Mountain Dew chaser. She wasn't sure if it was because she had died, or the fact that she had learned that aliens were real and were living among them, or if it was the fact that one of those said aliens had brought her back to life that kept her awake, but whatever the reason, it wasn't conducive to sleeping.

She couldn't suppress a smile as she remembered the look on Kate Lockley's face as Max had informed them he was an alien, and that his sister Isabel and friend Michael Guerin were also "not of this earth." The detective had been speechless.

Cordelia had been surprised, too, though not much. Not a whole lot surprised her anymore. After all, she worked for a vampire with a soul, her work associate was a former-Watcher of two Vampire Slayers, and she herself was a seer.

She stretched her arms above her head as she sat up slowly in bed. She was still somewhat amazed that there was no lingering pain from being stabbed, or from the broken ribs she'd had before she died. Max had healed those, too. Aside from being tired, she felt completely normal.

She looked over at the clock on her bedside table. The digital numbers read 9:16 a.m. Her apartment was completely silent. Not that she wasn't used to the silence; Dennis rarely made any noise. But now she had seven guests.

Everyone must still be asleep, she mused.

Cordelia climbed out of bed, rubbing her eyes sleepily. She very nearly tripped over Angel. She was startled--he was curled up asleep on her bedroom floor. At least, she assumed he was asleep. It wasn't like he snored because he didn't even breathe in the first place, so it was hard to tell. But his eyes were closed.

She wondered why he was sleeping on her floor. She shrugged, chalked it up to the fact that Liz, Maria and Isabel were asleep in her guest room, and that Max, Michael and Alex were conked out in her living room, and that since Angel tended to be uncomfortable around people he didn't know well, he must have figured she wouldn't mind him sleeping on her floor.

And she didn't.

It had just surprised her.

Cordelia pulled the comforter off her bed and draped it over him gently. She checked to make sure the window blinds were closed tightly so he didn't burst into flames, and then gazed down at him for a moment. She couldn't help the smile that crossed her face as she stepped around him and closed her bedroom door quietly as she walked into the hallway.

She tiptoed past the three sleeping teen boys in the living room and walked into the kitchen. To her surprise, Liz was standing at the sink, staring out the window.

"Morning," Cordelia said quietly as she walked over to the coffee pot.

"Good morning. How are you feeling?" Liz asked, her voice worried.

"Okay. Tired, but okay." Cordelia held up the coffee pot and offered it to the younger girl.

"No thanks."

Cordelia carried her mug to the kitchen table and sat down. Liz sat down across from her. "Sleep well?"

"Actually, no," Liz admitted.

"Me either. I think it was the whole dying thing."

"Yeah, that is pretty scary." Cordelia stared at her. Then Liz must have realized what she said and she looked at Cordelia with wide eyes. "Um...that's how I found out about Max. I was working at my parents' cafe and these two guys were arguing. One of them pulled out a gun. I got shot. Max saved my life," Liz told her quietly.

Cordelia stared into her coffee mug for a long moment. "Did you...see things?"

"Flashes. Of my life. Why? Did you?"

"Not flashes of my life, no..."

"What did you see?" she asked curiously.

Cordelia hesitated, hoping what she was about to say didn't sound completely insane. "A friend of mine who died a few months ago."

Liz stared at her but remained silent.

"Maybe I was just dreaming, but...it seemed so real. I don't know. Maybe it was because I wanted it to be real, you know? Because I miss him." She bit her lip.

"What was his name?"

"Doyle," she answered softly. She looked up and met Liz's eyes. "I inherited my visions from him. He was a half-demon. He used to get them. Right before he died, he kissed me. It transferred the whole vision thing to me."

"Wow. That's a pretty big responsibility."

"Yeah, but...even though the visions are painful, they help save lives. So I guess that's what counts."

"Yeah," Liz agreed. "Look, thank you. For saving me the other day."

Cordelia nodded. "You're welcome," she said sincerely. "I'm not usually the one to do the whole life-saving-thing. I get the visions and Angel does the rest. But I didn't get a vision of you getting hit by a car."

"You didn't?" Liz looked at her in surprise. "Then how did you--?"

"It was a coincidence, I guess. I took an early lunch from Angel Investigations and I was just walking when I saw you." She took a sip of her coffee and thought for a moment. "So, what's the deal with you and Max?" Cordelia asked, studying her carefully.

"I don't know. He's destined to be with someone else."

"Yeah, that much you told me earlier. But you love each other."

Liz nodded sadly. "Sometimes it's not enough."

Cordelia felt an overwhelming amount of sadness flood her heart and she wasn't sure where it had come from.

"So what happened, anyway? When Max and Angel and everyone went back to the warehouse?" Liz questioned.

Cordelia sighed. "Well, Lindsey was long gone, of course. And Nasedo...was a big old pile of dust. They didn't find anything else."

Angel had insisted on escorting her back to her apartment before he and the others returned to check out the warehouse. Liz, Maria, and Alex had stayed behind and filled her in on some of the details of the whole alien situation. After awhile, they got tired and went off to sleep, but Cordelia had waited for the others to come back, anxious to find out what had happened. When Angel returned he told her what they found. Wesley and Kate had gone back to their own apartments while everyone else bunked at her place.

"Then Lindsey just gets away with everything?"

"For now. We'll find a way to stop him one of these days, don't worry," Cordelia said in determination.

Liz nodded. "I wish there was something we could do to help."

"Hey, you guys have got your own problems to deal with," she pointed out.

"It's kind of nice to know that there are other people dealing with this kind of stuff, though. It makes it a little less overwhelming."

Cordelia looked at her thoughtfully. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Hey, you guys should come back and visit sometime. We could exchange stories on all the things we've fought against, and how many times we've saved the world. Or at least helped save the world."

Liz smiled. "That'd be great. Maybe you guys could come down to Roswell sometime."

She nodded. "I've never been to New Mexico." She looked up as Maria and Isabel walked into the kitchen. "Morning."

"Morning," they said in unison as they joined Cordelia and Liz at the table.

"Coffee?" she offered.

"Sounds good," Isabel agreed.

"Not for me," Maria responded.

Cordelia stood up, walked over to the coffee pot and poured Isabel a cup. "Angel? Coffee?" she asked without turning around.

"Yeah," he answered, his tone surprised.

She smiled and poured another cup. She handed one to Isabel and the other to Angel.

"Anyone hungry?" Angel asked, looking at her intently.

Cordelia met his gaze and tried to read the expression on his face. "Famished," she answered, feeling a bit confused.

"Oh, he makes the best scrambled eggs," Liz informed Isabel and Maria, who both grinned.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Thanks again for everything," Liz said quietly to Cordelia, Angel and Wesley, who had come over in time for breakfast.

"You're welcome," Angel told her.

Cordelia gave her a hug. "Come back and visit anytime."

Liz smiled. "Okay."

Angel walked over to Max. "I want to thank you for saving Cordelia."

Max nodded. "Thanks for saving Liz and for watching after her. I don't know what I would have done if Nasedo had hurt her in any way."

Angel felt a surge of guilt run through his veins and he looked over at Cordelia. "She's okay, right?"

Max followed his gaze and smiled as his sister hugged Cordelia, then took Alex's hand. "Yeah, she's fine. The handprint should fade in a couple days."

He nodded. "What happens when you get back to Roswell?"

Max took a deep breath. "Hopefully we can work through our differences and pull together. They're my family. I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe. All of them."

Angel looked over at Cordelia and Wesley again. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

"Come on, Max. We have to go," Michael said impatiently. "Maria's mom's coming home today."

Max nodded and shook Angel's hand. "If you ever need any help," Angel began.

"Thanks. Same to you."

Angel moved over to stand next to Cordelia and Wesley. "Have a safe trip."

"Bye!" Liz called, waving as she followed her friends out the door.

Wesley closed the door behind them. "Well, this has certainly been an interesting week, hasn't it?"

Cordelia nodded in agreement, though she was frowning slightly.

Angel gazed at her. "What is it?" he asked in concern.

"Nothing...I just have this feeling that this isn't over yet."

Angel met her gaze and held it. He felt it, too.


End file.
